Swiss pension funds have invested approximately CHF319m (€546m) in three private equity funds managed by Swisscanto.
The three private equity vehicles – Growth Fund I, Growth Fund II and Decarbonisation Fund – now hold more than CHF500m in assets under management.
A spokesperson for Swisscanto told IPE that, across the three private equity vehicles, pension funds account for around 75% of investments, excluding seed capital provided by Zurich Cantonal Bank (ZKB).
In total, ZKB provided CHF84.5m in seed capital for the three private equity funds, the spokesperson added.
Swisscanto announced last week the second close of Growth Fund II, bringing total committed capital to CHF190.9m.
“We are currently conducting an in-depth review of further investments in Swiss and European growth companies in the coming months,” said René Nicolodi, ZKB’s head of investment committee for private equity.
Growth Fund II invests primarily in Swiss companies with scalable business models and growth potential in healthcare, industry, and information and data services.
More than 90% of commitments secured between the first and second close came from Swiss pension funds, according to the spokesperson. The fund’s first close in November last year secured total commitments of CHF172m.
Swiss pension funds have been reducing exposure to private equity, showing reluctance to make new commitments amid a difficult exit environment.
However, schemes continue to seek opportunities in private equity, particularly in buyouts and venture capital, which are considered satellite asset classes within broader private equity programmes.
According to Swisscanto’s spokesperson, pension funds continue to pursue returns through diversification in a low-interest-rate environment and against the backdrop of a highly concentrated domestic equity market.
Investments in private equity also reflect a home-bias approach, partly driven by currency considerations, the spokesperson added.
Swiss pension funds are also seeking to broaden their investment universe through exposure to companies with strong growth potential in the technology sector.