Morphosis Capital, a newly established private equity fund focused on growth capital investments in Romanian Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), has announced the successful first closing of Morphosis Capital Fund I at EUR 45 million. The Fund’s main investor is the European Investment Fund, with resources from the Regional Operational Programme, co-financed through the European Regional Development Fund.
Morphosis Capital Fund I plans to invest EUR 5-15 million equity per transaction in established companies in sectors such as Consumer goods and supporting sectors, Healthcare, Technology with impact in the real economy and B2B services.
The Morphosis Capital team consists of four Romanian partners (Andrei Gemeneanu, Gabriela Dumitru, Simona Gemeneanu and Dragos Petre), who bring together a strong combination of private equity, transaction and operational experience at local and international levels. The four Romanians have worked in top positions in major corporations such as Unilever, Thomson Reuters, TNT Express, Procter & Gamble, PwC and Innova Capital. Having spent a meaningful part of their professional lives abroad, they have returned to Romania to act as change agents and help develop an entrepreneurial environment.
“We are very excited by the opportunities we see in Romania. We start this new journey humbled by the trust our investors have put in us. We are looking forward to working with successful Romanian SMEs and with like-minded entrepreneurs to take their companies to the next level. Our unique mix of skills, as well as our combination of local and international experience, places us well to help unlock this potential. We call our approach hands-on ownership, we are the kind of people who will roll up their sleeves and look to genuinely add value,” said Andrei Gemeneanu, Managing Partner of Morphosis Capital.
In addition to the EIF, with resources from the Regional Operational Programme, Morphosis Capital’s investor base includes Romanian and international institutional investors and a mix of local and international individual investors.Read more aboutBlack Sea Fund names Iulian Portasa, a private equity professional with more than 10 years M&A experience, as Partner read more
A key element of Morphosis Capital Fund I’s strategy is to invest in companies which have the potential to become national and international champions. The Morphosis Capital will bring operational, finance, sales and marketing value-add to Romanian SMEs, in addition to access to capital, through their combined experience and network.
European Investment Fund (EIF) is part of the European Investment Bank and the main financing platform for SMEs in Europe, through its financial instruments in form of private equity investments, guarantees and microfinancing. In Romania, EIF operates through financing instruments co-financed through structural funds and investments such as JEREMIE 2007-2013, The SME Initiative, Regional Operational Programme, Operational Competitiveness Programme and National Rural Development Programme.
The Romanian Regional Operational Programme (ROP) aims to promote smart, sustainable and inclusive growth in all regions of Romania, making them more attractive places in which to live and work. The Programme addresses major development challenges for Romania, such as regional competitiveness, sustainable urban development, the low-carbon economy, and economic and social infrastructure at regional and local level. The ROP benefits from EUR 6.8 billion in co-financing from the European Regional Development Fund.
