Armen invests in Jolt Capital

Armen, the European GP Stakes pioneer, announces an equity investment of up to 32% in Jolt Capital, the leading European investor in deeptech growth companies. This transaction, which is subject to the prior approval of the French Financial Regulator, Autorité des Marchés Financiers, is the second investment by Armen GP Stakes Fund I.

Operation to accelerate growth in a buoyant market

Thanks to the equity investment, Jolt Capital will have the resources to develop a deeptech platform and expand from a strong base in Europe to North America and Asia. In addition to the financial resources, Jolt Capital will benefit from strategic and operational support, in particular through the range of services that Armen provides to its portfolio companies.

"With the success of our last fund, Jolt Capital IV, we have become one of the leaders in growth investment in European deeptech companies. With this strengthening of our capital base, we are preparing to expand our presence in Europe and beyond. We immediately felt comfortable with Armen. We have a common approach to investment, based on strong expertise in the field, a desire to participate in the growth of companies, and cultural proximity between the teams," Jean Schmitt, Chairman and Managing Partner of Jolt Capital. 

Second investment for Armen GP Stakes Fund I

With over €500 million under management and 30 investment professionals, Jolt Capital is an essential partner for deeptech companies with strong intellectual property and high growth ambitions. Jolt Capital combines extensive sector expertise (semiconductors, robotics, AI, cybersecurity, materials, sensors, photonics, etc.) with a resolutely data-driven approach, thanks in particular to its proprietary artificial intelligence platform Jolt.Ninja. Jolt Capital has invested in around ten European countries, with multiple industrial production or software development sites. The annual pipeline of opportunities, which amounts to around 3,000 targets per year, is fed two-thirds by qualified suggestions from Jolt.Ninja, with the remainder coming from the partners' extensive network.

Jolt Capital's investment strategy lies at the crossroads of two secular trends: the need to grow deeptech companies and climate-responsible investment. The first has been at the heart of Jolt Capital's thesis since it was founded in 2011, and over the past few years it has proved its relevance in terms of strengthening sovereignty, creating high-quality, local jobs and delivering a better return on investment than software-focused investors. The latter is also one of Jolt Capital's core convictions, and it has decided to invest its Fund IV and the forthcoming Fund V under Article 9 of the SFDR, with quantified greenhouse gas reduction targets for all the companies in its portfolio.

"Jolt has everything to interest us: a top-quality team and a leading position in a fast-growing sector where financing requirements and the volume of new projects are considerable," Dominique Gaillard, Chairman of Armen.

ABOUT ARMEN

Armen is a mission-driven company which aims to contribute to a positive change in the private equity ecosystem and to responsibly steer management companies and their holdings,- according to ESG-Criteria, towards a sustainable future. Armen's first fund invests as a minority shareholder in European alternative investment companies through transactions called GP Stakes.

Armen is regulated by the French financial regulator Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), as a portfolio management company since 07/09/2022 under the number GP-202222.

Currently, Armen has Exempt Reporting Advisor status with the SEC under registration No. 802128669 in the USA.