Fundraising

The French branch of 21 Partners, currently in market seeking €400m for its latest offering, has promoted two to partner.

Align Capital Partners began fundraising its first fund in June and raced past its $250m target toward its $325m hard-cap.

After about a year of fundraising, commitments from existing LPs reached $790m, surpassing the original $750m target.

This is the first exit from HgCapital 7; the firm is currently in discussions about raising its eighth fund.

The German listed firm has raised the funds through a share placement to invest alongside its recently-closed Fund VII, said CFO Susanne Zeidler.

Now that the Bank of Italy has authorised the acquisition of the Milan-based private equity firm by Italmobiliare, Clessidra is preparing for a final close of its latest buyout fund.

New York-based Cornell Capital, founded by a former vice chair of Goldman Sachs merchant bank, has a target of $2bn for its latest fund.

The firm raised Ardian LBO Fund VI in four months – its fastest ever fundraising.

The lower mid-market firm closed beyond its $400m target, thanks to its returning LPs.