OREANDA-NEWS. Global alternative asset manager The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) today announced it has raised €3.75B for its latest Carlyle Europe Partners (CEP) fund, closing at the fund's hard cap.

The fund is the fourth in the Carlyle Europe Partners franchise. CEP IV focuses on European upper mid-market opportunities across a wide range of sectors and industries and is managed by a team of 39 investment professionals across five offices.  Carlyle Europe Partners seeks to invest in mid-size companies in Europe, accelerate their growth and support their efforts to expand internationally.

In total, over 140 investors from 35 countries have made commitments to the new CEP IV fund.

Marco De Benedetti, Managing Director and co-Head of Carlyle Europe Partners said: "Eighteen years after establishing our first Carlyle Europe Partners fund, we are delighted to close our fourth fund, which confirms renewed appetite for investing in Europe despite several years of macro-economic uncertainty.  We are grateful for the continued confidence our investors have shown in us, and will work hard to produce attractive returns consistent with our strong track record. We continue to believe Europe offers significant, compelling investment opportunities and we are grateful to our existing and new investors for their support and loyalty."

Gregor Boehm, Managing Director and co-Head of Carlyle Europe Partners said: "Our previous fund portfolios contained a number of hallmark investments including Talaris, Moncler, RAC and Axalta (formally DuPont Performance Coatings). We will continue to make transformational investments in Europe that add value and help companies grow successfully.  Carlyle's approach of combining a global network with sector expertise and local embedded teams will help ensure we continue to serve our investors well in the coming years."

CEP IV has already made four investments in companies located in France, Italy and Spain: Homair Vacances, a pan-European outdoor accommodation and holiday group operating over 15,000 mobile homes across almost 300 campsites; Custom Sensors and Technology, a globally diversified manufacturer of niche sensing, control & motion products; Sematic, a global manufacturer and supplier of elevator components; and Palacios, a specialty Spanish foods supplier.