In brief: Palatine closes Impact Fund 2 below target at £150m

Palatine Private Equity has closed its second impact fund at £150 million ($182 million; €172 million), below its £200 million target. The firm’s impact strategy makes growth equity investments addressing themes including climate, circular economy, education and healthcare access across UK and northern European markets. Fund II is headed by managing partner Beth Houghton and has a typical bitesize of £30 million.

Palatine was one of the earliest generalist private equity firms to move into impact investing to target competitive returns: its £100 million debut fund was launched in 2016, the same year Bain Capital and TPG launched their impact strategies. One of the most notable investments from Palatine’s impact strategy is Anthesis, a sustainability consultancy the firm sold to the Carlyle Group earlier this year for a 6x return on its original investment.

Beth Houghton, impact managing partner at Palatine, told New Private Markets she was delighted to have closed Fund II: “To raise 50 percent more than the first fund in this fundraising environment was a fantastic achievement and a testament to the performance of Fund I, which has already delivered four exits with an average exit multiple of 4x.”