Conversus distributions on pace to triple 2009 figures

Conversus Capital, a listed fund of funds, received distributions of $44.1 million in the month of October, putting realisation activity on track to triple 2009 levels based on data through the first 11 months of the year, the firm said in its monthly report. So far in 2010, Conversus has received $424 million in distributions, compared to $168 million for all of 2009.

The five largest distributions in October totaled $13.4 million, and included portfolio companies such as NetFlix, Burger King and Central Security Group.

Of the $13.1 million in capital calls Conversus received in October, $9.3 million were for buyout funds, the majority of which came from vintage years 2009 (56 percent) and 2005 (18 percent).

Conversus debuted on the Euronext in 2007 at $25 a share. The fund of funds reported an estimated net asset value per unit of $26.48 as of 30 November, representing a 2.8 percent increase since 31 October and a 13 percent increase year to date. Funded assets were roughly $1.9 billion, while the firm had $590 million of unfunded commitments.

During the month of November, four Conversus portfolio companies, representing $7.8 million of investment NAV as of the end of the month, completed IPOs. Twenty-two other portfolio companies, representing approximately $92.7 million in investment NAV, have filed for IPOs, which may or may not be completed.

Conversus has been pursuing a “realisation strategy”, in which it is meeting capital calls through distributions it receives from general partners, but not making new commitments to funds. The firm currently has $2.5 billion in assets under management