Waterland Private Equity Investments, the €8 billion portfolio Dutch private equity house, has today launched a new €2.5 billion fund for Europe.
Waterland opened a Dublin office last year as it continues to deepen its investment in Ireland.
The group is mainly focused on investing in small and medium-sized companies operating in four broad areas - outsourcing and digitisation, leisure and luxury, ageing population, and sustainability.
It typically takes controlling stakes in profitable businesses with earnings of between €5m and €20m before interest and tax.
According to Waterland, the Irish market is positioned with a huge number of opportunities, particularly entrepreneurial businesses that are often family-run and ready for the next step in their growth.
Laura Dillon, Head of the Irish Team and Principal at Waterland Private Equity, said the company was looking to use the new fund to help find great Irish businesses.
She said businesses that are looking to expand, particularly into mainland Europe, can benefit from Waterland's help.
"We can support them to grow organically but also through buy-and-build as there may be companies on the continent that could be a good match in helping to accelerate growth," Ms Dillon added.
Waterland said its latest fund raising round attracted commitments from world class institutional investors with over half headquartered in Europe, over a third in the US and select investors from the Middle East and Asia Pacific.
Public pension plans represent the largest proportion of its investor base, it added.
