Melbourne, 6 October 2022: Yarra Capital Management (Yarra) today announced the launch of the Yarra Private Capital Discovery Fund, its first Private Market equity offering, to be led by David Acton who has now joined its Australian equities team as Portfolio Manager.

The new Fund will seek to invest in the equity or convertible notes of unlisted companies with clear plans to IPO or trade sale within a three-year time horizon, building a diversified portfolio of 10-20 high quality companies varied by sector, size and duration to exit, across Australia and New Zealand.

The Fund will benefit from the expertise of an investment panel comprising: Dion Hershan, Chairman and Head of Australian Equities; David Acton, Portfolio Manager; Katie Hudson, Head of Australian Equities Research and Small Cap Portfolio Manager; Joel Fleming, Microcap Portfolio Manager; and Ed Eason, Managing Director.

The closed-end vehicle seeks to raise a minimum of A$100 million plus from institutional and wholesale investors. Applications to invest in the Fund will close on 1 December 2022.

David Acton joins Yarra with more than 30 years’ experience, having previously spent 17 years at Goldman Sachs, based most recently in Sydney as Head of Equities for Australia. He joins Yarra from Rothschild & Co., where he was a Senior Advisor.

David Acton, Portfolio Manager of the Yarra Private Capital Discovery Fund, commented:

“I am excited to be joining Yarra’s Australian equity franchise as Portfolio Manager of the Private Capital Discovery Fund. With IPO markets effectively closed, and businesses staying private for longer, I am looking forward to investing in high-quality private businesses that require patient capital to help achieve their growth ambitions at a compelling point in the cycle.

“The Yarra investment team is one of the largest and most experienced in Australia. Being able to access and leverage the analytical power and research knowledge of Yarra’s 13 other equity market professionals – with an average 16 years’ industry experience – is unique and critically important to our due diligence process which will be a significant benefit to our investors.”

Dion Hershan, Chairman and Head of Australian Equities, added:

“We are delighted to be bringing a private capital capability to market at such an interesting time in unlisted markets. It is a natural extension for our existing Australian equities franchise and is consistent with our focused approach to bringing the very best solutions to our clients.

“We are delighted to be bringing David – our former Goldman Sachs colleague – into the business as Portfolio Manager. He is an outstanding hire for our growing business, and the right person to lead this new capability.”