France-based venture capital firm Ring Capital launched yesterday with €140m ($172m) of capital supplied by limited partners including food producer Danone and insurance provider AG2R La Mondiale.
Financial services firm Bred and state-owned investment bank BPifrance are also among Ring Capital’s LPs, as is Tikehau Capital, an asset management firm that has paid an undisclosed amount for a 25% equity stake in the firm.
Ring Capital will make growth-stage investments in Europe-based digital and internet technology companies, providing between €1m and €15m for investments that can either be stake purchases or made as part of larger funding rounds sized between €3m and €30m.
The firm intends to fund at least 15 companies by 2021 and has already made its first investment, though it has not identified the portfolio company in question. It is currently lining up two more deals that are yet to close.
Geoffroy Bragadir and Nicolas Celier, Ring Capital’s co-founders, said: “Ring Capital was created to support the needs of a growing number of established, often profitable startups seeking to accelerate their growth.
“Beyond financing, these companies are in critical need for high-quality operational assistance to achieve their international growth or development plans. Ring Capital offers them an additional team combining tech specialists with a community of mentors mixing well-known entrepreneurs, CEOs and CTOs who have successful scale-up experience.”