Claret Capital Closes €575M Fund IV for European Growth Debt
September 7, 2026 – 6:18 am
From left: David Bateman and Johan Kampe, managing partners at Claret Capital Partners.
Claret Capital Partners has closed its fourth European growth debt fund at €575M, surpassing its target of €500M. The London-based firm announced the final close today, distributing the funds into €440m of Fund IV commitments and €135m of affiliated discretionary mandates.
The fund provides capital without equity ownership, an attractive proposition as raising equity becomes increasingly challenging. Approximately 32% of the fund has been disbursed across 27 companies, including:
- B2B buy-now-pay-later platform Billie
- Commercial property software firm PRODA
- Sales intelligence company Surfe
- Clinical-stage drug developers Cinclus Pharma and Inventiva.
Claret describes itself as Europe’s largest independent growth debt fund manager, distinguishing itself from larger institutions like Kreos Capital, which raised a larger fund at €1.25bn but was subsequently acquired by BlackRock in 2023.
This raise stands out due to its investor base, which includes pension plans, insurers, family offices, and private wealth investors through an ELTIF (European Long-Term Investment Fund), a structure designed to access long-dated private assets. This is a significant development as European growth lending has been less accessible to private wealth investors.
Fund III’s successful track record played a crucial role in attracting investors. Since its 2022 close at €297m, it has achieved several notable exits:
- Cytora acquired by Applied Systems
- Endomag acquired by Hologic
- Logpoint acquired by Summa Equity
- Lyst acquired by ZOZO
- Tiqets acquired by Expedia
- Abivax listed on Nasdaq.
Despite the modest sum compared to equity fundraising (e.g., Accel’s $3.5bn with a European allocation), Claret has lent over €1.5bn across more than 210 companies since its inception in 2013.
David Bateman highlighted the significance of the raise:
"The amount not only validates our approach and track record but is also a massive vote of confidence for the European technology, life sciences, and impact ecosystems."
Johan Kampe anticipated ongoing demand:
"As equity markets remain more selective and founders look for ways to grow without unnecessary dilution, we expect demand for flexible, non-dilutive capital to keep accelerating."