Impact firm North Sky makes secondaries hire

The Minneapolis-headquartered firm is investing the $220m Clean Growth V, which counts Oklahoma Police Pension and Retirement System among its investors.

North Sky Capital continues to build out its impact secondaries team.

The Minneapolis-headquartered firm has hired Nate Condon as a senior associate, according to a statement. He joins from Thrivent Private Investments, where he made private equity fund and co-investments.

“[Nate’s] experience in deal execution and evaluating risk/reward outcomes will be of immediate benefit to our impact secondaries strategy, particularly with respect to LP secondary and secondary direct transactions,” principal Tom Jorgensen said in the statement.

Condon’s appointment follows that of vice-president Ryan Fraser in April 2020.

North Sky is investing the $220 million Clean Growth Fund V, which closed above target in September 2019. Among the vehicle’s limited partners is Oklahoma Police Pension and Retirement System, which committed $25 million, according to affiliate title Secondaries Investor data.

Speaking to Secondaries Investor in October, North Sky chief executive Scott Barrington said portfolios of impact sakes began to return to market in the third quarter after a period dominated by GP-led and preferred equity deals.

LPs generally sell impact stakes because their priorities change, rather than for liquidity reasons, Barrington said. “Energy storage, electric vehicle charging, grid optimisation technology, indoor farming… The definition [of impact] is always evolving and every CIO has an idea of what it is.”

Clean Growth V has achieved an average discount to net asset value of 33 percent on LP portfolio transactions and 45 percent for GP-leds, the firm noted.

North Sky has invested more than $1.1 billion across its impact secondaries and infrastructure funds. Its three impact secondaries funds have received $307 million of commitments and made 38 investments, according to its website.