18/01/2012 Author: Tony Griffiths

France-only seeding fund set for launch

A new seeding fund created to invest exclusively in France-based hedge fund talent has completed its initial round of asset-raising and is poised to launch later this month with €115m ($146m) in AuM, HFMWeek can reveal.  

The Emergence seeding fund, an initiative between several of France’s biggest financial bodies – including the AFG, representative of the French asset managers – and Paris-based seeding firm NewAlpha Asset Management, is expected to debut potentially in the next few days, sources with knowledge of the matter told HFMWeek.

Designed to foster growth in the French hedge fund industry, Emergence will only make allocations to hedge fund firms domiciled in France.

The fund, a Luxembourg-based Sicav, is believed to have received over 50 applicants from hopeful candidates. The first allocation is on course for the second quarter of 2012.   

A second round of fund-raising is expected to take place in the summer, the sources added.   

According to the AFG website, investors that have shown significant interest in the Emergence project include the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations (CDC) group, insurance companies and pension funds.

In September 2011, HFMWeek reported that the second round of asset-gathering, slated for 2012, was expected to take the fund up to €250m ($319m) by June.