Acanthus Secondaries leverages off its embedded relationships and deep market experience to provide comprehensive and often complex liquidity solutions, both discreetly and effectively.
LP Advisory
Whether an LP is experienced within the secondary market or not, we undertake the heavy lifting from launch through to closing, creating the necessary competitive tension and momentum to maximise price and achieve the optimum outcome for our client.
LP Fund Interests
We act for LPs who through active management, are seeking liquidity for their illiquid holdings, often for non-core and tail-end fund portfolios or single-lines, be it buyout, growth, venture, real estate, infrastructure, private debt or fund of funds. It is our role to achieve the highest market price, accessing specific pockets of capital that may have been otherwise overlooked, to provide a solution from a counterparty that offer the lowest execution risk or a mosaic solution from multiple buyers.
Given that portfolios can be mixed in terms of different vintages, strategies and geographies, we tailor each transaction, proactively marketing to specific buyers who we have high conviction will undertake due diligence and bid on the underlying assets, whilst working to the vendor’s preferred timeline.
5 stage process:
- Preparation
- Marketing
- Bidding
- Execution
- Settlement
GP Advisory
We provide GP-led creative solutions to both our fundraising clients and to external GPs. These types of transactions include:
Continuation vehicles
Continuation vehicles are most suitable in scenarios whereby a company or companies held within a fund, often at the end of the fund’s life, would benefit from additional time to develop and blossom. Our aim is to devise a solution that is beneficial for all stakeholders, allowing new investors to gain exposure at a fair price, whilst providing liquidity to LPs who may require it.
Replacing investors
LPs may have requested liquidity within a certain vehicle. This can be done by replacing the investor base and can be an opportune time to establish new relationships with LPs who will support the GP in the future.
Stapled transactions
On occasion and in a tough fundraising environment, it may make sense to facilitate a secondary transaction, in tandem with a fundraise.
GP-led tender offers
The GP provides existing LPs with a liquidity solution from a secondary investor at a pre-agreed price and with no amendments to the fund terms. They then have the option to accept it or remain in the fund.
Sourcing
We collaborate with LPs to actively source a particular fund interest, outside that of a competitive process. This can enable the buyer to acquire a new holding at a slightly better price, than if they had have purchased it in a competitive auction process. This also guarantees the selling LP with a solution immediately, without the distraction of undertaking an auction process which may or may not be successful and without incurring a sell-side fee.
LPs utilise this service for various different reasons, including but not limited to:
- Familiarising themselves with a GP ahead of potentially committing to their next fund
- Top up their existing holding
- Strategically gain access to an oversubscribed fund, so to be included in the next fundraise
Once mandated, we will exclusively work on the buyer’s behalf to acquire the interest at the best possible price, with our interests remaining closely aligned with the successful outcome of the process.
Why Us?
As a well-established Private Markets Advisor for over 25 years, we are well positioned to deliver best in class liquidity solutions and remain closely aligned with the outcome of any transaction we work on. Our hands on and personalised approach, ensures we are focused, choosing not to take on more than a select number of mandates at any one time. The deal team also remains the same throughout any process we orchestrate and we pride ourselves on our proven process led approach, whilst remaining creative when addressing more complex situations.
Contact us
Paul Chappell
Head of Secondaries
Tel: +44 (0)20 7317 5861
Email: paul.chappell@acanthus-pe.com