AlpInvest, Lexington, Hamilton Lane back Audax GP-led

The continuation fund is worth $1.7bn and holds assets including a specialty chemical maker, a dental practice management company and a wire and cable producer.

AlpInvest Partners, Lexington Partners and Hamilton Lane have led a process that allowed Audax Private Equity to move assets from its 2012-vintage fund into a continuation vehicle – the first such deal the firm has closed.

The Boston-headquartered firm moved multiple assets held in Audax Private Equity Fund IV including Innovative Chemical Products Group, Justrite Safety Group, 2 North Dental and TPC Wire & Cable into a separate fund worth $1.7 billion, according to a statement.

The close of the deal comes four months after sister publication Buyouts reported that Evercore had been mandated to work on the process.

“By leveraging the additional time and capital from this fund, we can continue to execute our proven buy-and-build acquisition strategy, with a goal of allowing our portfolio companies to reach their full potential,” Don Bramley, Audax managing director, said in the statement.

The deal also gives Audax capital to support the continued growth of key portfolio assets.

It is unclear how much of the secondaries capital will be available for fresh investments into the portfolio. Audax declined to comment on how much fresh capital was part of the deal or on pricing details.

Audax Private Equity Fund IV raised $1.25 billion and was backed by investors including Arizona State Retirement System, Dallas Police and Fire Pension System, the Rockefeller Foundation and Institutional Investment Partners Denmark, according to PEI data.

Other investors in the continuation vehicle include secondaries investors, primary investors and Fund IV limited partners, according to the statement. All LPs in Fund VI had the option to rollover their exposure into the continuation vehicle on status quo terms, or receiving full or partial liquidity, the statement noted.

Kirkland & Ellis provided legal counsel to Audax, while Ropes & Gray advised AlpInvest Partners and Hamilton Lane, with Proskauer Rose advising Lexington Partners.

Audax was founded in 1999 and is a mid-market investor with offices in Boston, New York and San Francisco. It has raised more than $27 billion in capital across its private equity and private debt businesses, according to the statement.