Amundi holds first close of senior impact fund at €650m

Amundi has launched the fourth vintage of its senior debt strategy with a first close at €650 million, reports affiliate title Private Debt Investor.

The Amundi Senior Impact Debt IV vehicle will follow a similar strategy to its predecessor fund, offering investors exposure to private senior corporate debt financing for mid-caps based in France and Europe. The fund is targeting €1 billion and expects to hold a final close in 2022.

Amundi said that the fund will have a strong focus on ESG and impact investing factors, with impact covenants integrated for most financings to support companies with ESG challenges. This will include a ratchet to reduce the cost of the debt if companies meet their impact targets. These covenants will be in addition to traditional financial covenants.

Thierry Vallière, head of private debt at Amundi, said the fund marks a major shift in focus towards sustainable investment.

“About 20 percent of the deals we did last year had an impact component and around a third of what we’ve done this year, but with this vehicle we want a majority of deals to be impact investments,” he said.

The fund will invest solely in euros and plans to invest in approximately 40 companies in various business sectors. Transaction range will be between €10 million and €100 million and will support mid-caps through recovery from covid-19 and finance their expansion plans and other strategic needs.

Senior Impact Debt IV is structured as a Luxembourg SICAV-RAIF and is marketed exclusively to intuitional investors in France, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Sweden, Norway and Finland with a minimum investment of €3 million. It has a gross target IRR of 4.5 percent and an eight-year lifespan with a three-year deployment period.