Pamlico Capital, which was formerly called First Union Capital Partners and then Wachovia Capital Partners, is an independent
private equity firm focused on
growth capital
Growth capital (also called expansion capital and growth equity) is a type of private equity investment, usually a minority investment, in relatively mature companies that are looking for capital to expand or restructure operations, enter new mar ...
and
leveraged buyout
A leveraged buyout (LBO) is one company's acquisition of another company using a significant amount of borrowed money ( leverage) to meet the cost of acquisition. The assets of the company being acquired are often used as collateral for the loa ...
investments in
middle-market companies in the business services, technology services, telecommunications and healthcare industries.
The firm, which is based in
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...
, was founded in 1988 as the private equity investment arm of
First Union Corporation. The firm has invested approximately $3.8 billion in more than 200 companies since inception across two funds.
The firm is named for the
Pamlico Sound
Pamlico Sound ( ) is a lagoon in North Carolina which is the largest lagoon along the North American East Coast, extending long and 15 to 20 miles (24 to 32 km) wide. It is part of a large, interconnected network of lagoon estuaries that i ...
, which is located in North Carolina.
Investments
Among the firm's notable investments are Daxko, Dexter & Chaney, Lightower Fiber Networks, MetaMetrics, Secure-24, Service Express, symplr, TMW Systems and Wilcon.
Spinout from Wells Fargo
Founded as First Union Capital Partners in 1988, the firm served as the
private equity investment arm of
First Union, a commercial bank based in Charlotte. The firm changed its name to Wachovia Capital Partners following the merger of
First Union and
Wachovia in 2001, under Managing Partner
Scott Perper currently serving as Head of Pamlico Capital, and Ted Gardner.
In 2005
Frederick (Eric) W. Eubankan
L. Watts Hamrick among the original partners at conception of First Union Capital Partners, were named Managing Partners of the firm alongside Scott Perper, Chief Financial Office
Tracey M. Chaffin and Partners: Art C. Roselle, Walker C. Simmons, and Scott R. Stevens; all of whom remain with th
firmto date.
As a captive private equity investment arm, the firm focused on
growth capital
Growth capital (also called expansion capital and growth equity) is a type of private equity investment, usually a minority investment, in relatively mature companies that are looking for capital to expand or restructure operations, enter new mar ...
,
leveraged buyout
A leveraged buyout (LBO) is one company's acquisition of another company using a significant amount of borrowed money ( leverage) to meet the cost of acquisition. The assets of the company being acquired are often used as collateral for the loa ...
and
mezzanine capital investments in
middle-market companies across a range of industries. The firm invested both as the lead investor or an
equity co-investor alongside other
financial sponsor
A financial sponsor is a private-equity investment firm, particularly a private equity firm that engages in leveraged buyout transactions.
Sponsors and management
In addition to bringing capital to a deal, financial sponsors are expected to bri ...
s.
During the
financial crisis of 2008, the firm's parent, Wachovia was acquired by
Wells Fargo, which had an existing private equity platform,
Norwest Equity Partners. In March 2010, the firm completed a spinout from Wells Fargo.
Pamlico Capital Funds
In October 2013, Pamlico Capital closed Fund III at $650 million, well-exceeding the original goal of $500 million. Pamlico Capital III is the first fund raised after the spin-out from Wells Fargo in 2010. While previous Funds had a majority investment from the financial institution, Pamlico Capital III exclusively includes outside investors: AlpInvest Partners, Constitution Capital Partners, GE Pension Trust, HarbourVest Partners, affiliates of Hartford Investment Management Company (HIMCO), HOOPP Capital Partners (the private equity arm of the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan), John Hancock Financial Services, SCM Strategic Capital Management, AG and TIAA-CREF.
Three years later in November 2016, Pamlico Capital closed Fund IV at the hard cap with total commitments of $910 million. Pamlico Capital IV (PC IV) raised its capital in only four months, was oversubscribed and significantly exceeded the original $750 million target.
In February 2020, the firm closed its fifth fund, Pamlico Capital V (PC V). PC V was well oversubscribed with demand from existing and new investors materially surpassing the original $1.25 billion target. As with Pamlico’s previous funds, PC V will seek equity investments of $25 million to $125 million in growing companies with total enterprise values of between $50 million and $350 million.
References
External links
Pamlico Capital(company website)
{{Wells Fargo
Private equity firms of the United States
Wells Fargo
Investment banking private equity groups
Financial services companies established in 1988
Companies based in Charlotte, North Carolina