Clipway, a London-based secondaries firm established by former Ardian executives, achieved a $6.4 billion final close on its inaugural fund, marking the largest debut secondaries vehicle on record. The fund exceeded its original $4 billion target by 60 percent and drew commitments from 186 limited partners across multiple regions, with Europe providing 44 percent of capital, followed by North and Latin America at 21 percent, the Middle East at 18 percent, and Asia at 17 percent.
The firm distinguished itself through the use of proprietary technology called TESS, an AI-driven system that screens and underwrites potential investments before human review. The platform maintains a database covering more than 38,500 private companies, enabling the team to compete with significantly larger industry incumbents. According to the company, approximately two-thirds of transaction volume deployed came from proprietary and off-market sources.
Clipway was established by Vincent Gombault, Ingmar Vallano, and Benoît Verbrugghe, each with substantial experience at Ardian. Gombault co-founded the Paris-based firm and previously served as global head of funds of funds and private debt before departing in December 2020. Vallano held the position of senior managing director for fund-of-funds and co-investment until 2021, while Verbrugghe led Ardian USA and served on its executive committee. Strategic partners backing the fund include Mubadala Investment Company, Carmignac, and General Atlantic.
The achievement surpasses Apollo Global Management’s previous record of $5.4 billion for a debut secondaries fund, which closed in May 2025. Clipway Secondary Fund I concentrates on diversified LP-led secondary transactions in North American and Western European buyout funds, having deployed over $6 billion in transaction volume across 1,403 companies in 177 funds.
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