About EQT

• Founded: 1994

• Headquarters: Stockholm, Sweden

• AUM: approximately €232bn as of 2024

• Strategy: Multi-strategy private markets platform spanning buyout, venture, infrastructure, real estate, and credit across Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas

• Track record: 16 active investment strategies, 200+ funds raised since inception, €47bn deployed in 2023 alone

• Leadership: Christian Sinding (CEO and Managing Partner), Caspar Callerström (Deputy CEO)

EQT has structured a continuation vehicle for its €566m EQT Ventures I fund, marking the firm's first multi-asset venture CV. HarbourVest led the transaction, which provided liquidity to original LPs including AP Fonden 4, Danica Pension, Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Company, and the European Investment Fund. The CV allows EQT to retain ownership of portfolio companies still requiring capital and time to mature, while giving earlier backers an exit option at the fund's maturity.

The debut venture fund raised €566m in 2016, EQT's opening move into early-stage software and platform businesses after two decades focused on buyout and infrastructure. A multi-asset CV at this vintage suggests some portfolio companies hit growth milestones that justify extended hold periods, while others may have disappointed or exited, creating uneven LP preferences for continued exposure. HarbourVest's lead role is notable — the firm has been among the most active CV buyers in venture over the past three years, stepping into dozens of single- and multi-asset deals as traditional venture secondaries dried up.

The structure raises questions about portfolio concentration and selection. Multi-asset CVs typically retain 5–10 companies, meaning EQT chose a subset of the original portfolio to carry forward. What didn't make the cut, and what does that signal about the tail of Ventures I? If the CV holds EQT's strongest performers, the original LPs who rolled may face a higher bar for future distributions than they would have under the original fund structure. Watch how EQT prices the next venture fund — if Ventures I's CV becomes a case study in extended holds, LP appetite for locking capital into 12–15 year timelines will be tested.

Source: Venture Capital Journal