US private equity firm Thoma Bravo has closed a €1.8bn fund to target European software companies, as it looks to take advantage of lower priced deals on this side of the Atlantic.
The fund will make equity investments in “middle-market” software businesses — typically meaning those earning between $1bn-10bn in revenue — the company said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Our first dedicated pool of capital for European software marks a significant milestone for our firm,” said Orlando Bravo, founder and managing partner at Thoma Bravo.
“We see an enormous opportunity to back Europe’s technology innovators and help them scale, and we are grateful for the long-term support of our investors in realising this ambition.”
Thoma Bravo has been investing in Europe since 2011, deploying €14bn in equity across 16 deals in the region. That figure is dwarfed by its overall assets under management, however, which totals $166bn.
The group opened its first office in the region in London in 2023, and now has 10 staff in Europe. Seven of its 100-strong investment team are based in the region.
Since then, Thoma Bravo’s European team has made four investments across the Netherlands, Germany and Sweden, including the €400m take-private of EQS Group and investments in USU, Hypergene and Logex.
The company also acquired British cybersecurity company Darktrace in April 2024 in a $5.3bn deal.
The new fund would look to target software for compliance and healthcare professionals, alongside tools for chief financial officers, in deals with values of between €150m-1bn, Irina Hemmers, a partner at Thoma Bravo who leads its Europe office, told the Financial Times.
