Investcorp closes €318m fund to invest in European senior secured loans

The Mount Row Credit Fund will focus on sectors and businesses that are less likely to be affected by Covid-19

Investcorp on Monday said it closed a new fund with €318 million in commitments . Courtesy Investcorp

Bahrain-based alternative investment manager Investcorp closed a new fund with €318 million (Dh1.3 billion) in commitments as it looks to pick up large-cap European secured loans amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Mount Row Credit Fund will target the largest and most liquid European issuers with average earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of more than €200m per annum.

“The loan market has dislocated and performing senior secured loans are trading at levels not experienced since the global financial crisis in 2008,” Jeremy Ghose, global head of Investcorp credit management said in a statement on Monday.

“We believe that these conditions have created attractive investment opportunities that we are strongly positioned to capitalise on with our talent, expertise and long track record of investing in European senior secured loans.”

Investcorp, which counts Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Investment Company as its biggest shareholder, said the fund will focus on sectors and businesses less likely to be affected by Covid-19.

“While the current market environment is challenging, it is also generating opportunities for highly skilled investors that can recognise potentially attractive and undervalued assets. We believe that the oversubscribed closing of Mount Row reflects the confidence our clients have in our firm as well as the strength of our brand and standing in the investment community,” Timothy Mattar, Investcorp’s global head of distribution, said.

The fund attracted a broad and diverse group of existing and new global investors, including institutional investors, family offices and private clients across Europe, Asia and the Gulf. About 35 per cent of the committed capital from the fund has already been deployed, it added.

Investcorp, which has invested in a broad range of sectors and industries, has adjusted its portfolio amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Last month, the Bahrain-based company closed a new fund targeting Italian distressed debt with €340m in commitments to invest in Italy’s non-performing loan market. The Italian NPL Fund II will invest in distressed debt secured by residential and commercial real estate in the European country.

Investcorp is also planning to invest heavily in technology, with plans to allocate "a significant proportion" of its $1bn-$2bn (Dh3.67bn-Dh7.34bn) of annual private equity investments over the next two years into technology assets.

Since its inception in 1982, Investcorp has made over 195 private equity deals in the US, Europe, Asia, and the Mena region. It has also made more than 800 commercial and residential real estate investments in the US and Europe, with a total transaction value of $61bn.