Growth-Equity Firm FTV Capital Eyes Raising Record Seventh Fund

(Bloomberg) -- FTV Capital, a growth-equity firm, has begun informal discussions with investors about raising its seventh fund, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.

The firm hasn’t set a firm target for its latest vehicle, likely dubbed FTV VII LP, but it’s expected to seek to collect at least $1.8 billion, the person said. Formal fundraising efforts targeting pension funds, insurance companies, and other traditional institutional investors are expected to begin later in 2021, the person said.

A spokeswoman for FTV, which has offices in New York, San Francisco and Connecticut, declined to comment.

The new vehicle is set to eclipse the $1.2 billion that FTV raised in 2020 for its sixth fund, its largest to date. At the time, the firm -- led by managing partner Brad Bernstein -- said it had raised nearly $4 billion to back companies in its sectors of focus: financial services; enterprise technology and services; and payments and transaction processing. FTV’s target equity commitments range from $30 million to $100 million, it said at the time.

Founded in 1998, FTV’s portfolio companies include digital insurance platform Embroker, wealth management software maker Docupace, cybersecurity and compliance specialist Sysnet and pet insurance provider Bought By Many.

Another of the firm’s portfolio companies, Sunlight Financial LLC, in January agreed to go public via a merger with a SPAC affiliated with Apollo Global Management Inc.

Institutional investors, such as endowments and family offices, have backed growth-equity focused strategies due to the potential for lucrative returns as valuations for fast-growing private companies swell, and ahead of catalysts such as initial public offerings.

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