Key Takeaways
- Sector: Business Services, Consumer, Healthcare Healthtech & Medtech, Technology Software & Gaming.
- Geography: United States.
Analysis
Great Hill Partners has closed its ninth growth buyout fund, Great Hill Equity Partners IX, L.P., with $7 billion in commitments, surpassing its $5 billion target and hitting its hard cap in just five months. The raise was substantially oversubscribed, reflecting investor confidence in the firm’s long-term strategy.
Fund IX will continue Great Hill’s middle-market growth buyout approach, investing between $100 million and $500 million in high-growth companies across software, financial services, healthcare, consumer, and business services. The new vehicle follows Fund VIII, which closed in early 2022 with $4.65 billion.
With the fund’s launch, longtime Managing Directors Chris Busby, Nick Cayer, Rafael Cofiño, and Drew Loucks have joined the Executive Committee, serving alongside existing leaders Chris Gaffney, Mark Taber, and Matt Vettel. Michael Kumin transitions to Senior Advisor while continuing to manage his portfolio companies.
Investor interest spanned the globe, with commitments from pensions, sovereign wealth funds, endowments, insurance firms, healthcare systems, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals across North America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, South America, and Australia. Many are repeat investors in Great Hill’s prior funds.
“The strong demand for Fund IX is a testament to our team’s deep sector expertise and our portfolio companies’ ability to deliver transformative growth,” the Executive Committee said in a statement. Mary Kate Bertke, Managing Director and Head of Investor Relations, added that the firm looks forward to “thoughtfully deploying capital by partnering with founders and management teams leading cutting-edge businesses.”
Great Hill’s oversubscribed close mirrors a broader trend in private equity. Other firms, such as TA Associates and Summit Partners, have also closed recent growth funds above target, highlighting sustained LP appetite for vehicles focused on tech-enabled and healthcare-driven businesses, even amid a volatile macroeconomic backdrop.
Since its founding in 1998, Great Hill has raised over $19 billion and invested in more than 100 companies worldwide. Recognized for its performance, the firm ranked in the top five of the HEC Paris–Dow Jones Mid-Market and Large Buyout Performance Rankings for four consecutive years (2021–2024).
Latham & Watkins LLP advised Great Hill on the formation of Fund IX.