WAD Capital has successfully achieved a €67.5 million first close for its debut fund, which notably includes a €25 million investment from the European Investment Fund and European Investment Bank. The firm aims for a €130 million final close, focusing on the search fund model and entrepreneurship through acquisition across Europe.
Their strategy is to build a portfolio of around 25 companies by the end of 2027, focusing on entrepreneurs who acquire established small and medium-sized businesses, thereby adding an institutional structure to a model historically linked with individual searchers.
Highlighting the strategy’s potential, WAD Capital notes that the search fund model has provided an average internal rate of return (IRR) of approximately 35% over the past 30 years. In just nine months, the firm has completed eight acquisitions in Belgium and the Netherlands, showcasing an active deployment pace.
Additionally, WAD Capital is expanding its pipeline of prospective operators through a CEO-in-Residence program, which attracted around 2,200 applications from Belgium, the Netherlands, and France.
The investment from EIF/EIB not only bolsters the capital raised but also serves as validation for WAD Capital’s goal of institutionalizing the search fund model in Europe.
WAD Capital plans to continue raising funds toward its €130 million target, while simultaneously investing in more businesses across Europe.
KEY QUOTE:
“We’re not creating yet another SME-focused private equity fund. We are industrializing the search fund model, a model that has generated an average IRR of 35% over the past thirty years, to build one of Europe’s largest institutional platforms dedicated to entrepreneurship through acquisition.”
— Alain Brossé, Managing Partner of WAD Capital
