APG’s IMQubator launches second fund

Dutch Pension fund administrator APG will open up innovative investment ideas to other institutional investors, with the IMQubator hedge fund seeding platform it has backed launching a second fund to channel money to emerging managers.

The Amsterdam-based seeding fund for emerging hedge fund managers was founded in 2009 and has APG as a key backer.

Since then it has allocated €170 million ($242 million) to seven hedge fund start-ups. It has an additional $114 million of unallocated capital.

APG and one or two invited institutional investors will pump another $142 million into this original fund but will close it to further new capital by the end of the year.

In a vote of confidence in the ideas emerging from the alternative investment managers, APG extended the original $356 million with a term of 3+1+1 years from the end of December.

Of the original money, 70 per cent has been invested, with the new inflow of money used primarily to increase the capital invested in hedge funds already backed in the first fund.

“APG’s renewed commitment to IMQubator says all about our confidence in IMQubator and how it invests in emerging manager,” a spokesman for the large Dutch pension fund said.

It is expected that IMQubator’s investment committee will approve investment in an eighth fund by the end of May.

The seven funds selected already specialise in a number of areas, from predominately European late-stage growth technology companies to a focus on companies developing green technology.

Holland Private Equity (HPE) specialises in small- to mid-cap technology stocks in the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium.

It focuses on areas in the technology industry that are “asset light” and quickly scalable.

IMQubator chief executive officer Jeroen Tielman (pictured) said it was still early days but that the funds selected had performed strongly so far.

“Most of the seven funds have become operational only in the last 9 months or so, so it is a bit early to say something meaningful about their track,” Tielman said.

“As far as fundraising is concerned, we expect the HPE fund to have raised assets by this summer of about $185-213 million and the MCapital started earlier this year with assets of more than $71 million. I think all of our strategies are potentially of interest to institutional investors.”

MCapital specialises in private equity investments across Europe and Asia, with a focus on distressed, restructurings and development capital.

When looking at potential investments Tielman said they target “exceptional talents within the hedge fund space that have very pure strategies and are remote from having beta exposure”.