Macfarlanes advises Dawn Capital on closing of fourth flagship fund

09 September 2020

Macfarlanes has advised venture capital investor Dawn Capital on the raising of its fourth fund, Dawn IV, which has closed at its hard cap of €333m/$400m within six months of launching.

This is Dawn Capital’s largest fundraise to date, investing exclusively in early-stage European B2B software.

The fund was oversubscribed, securing investments from institutional investors, including pension funds, endowment funds, fund of funds as well as family offices and high net-worth individuals from across Europe, the US and Asia.  

Dawn IV will follow the same strategy as its predecessor Dawn III, on which Macfarlanes also advised, continuing to invest in Series A and B funding rounds in Europe’s leading B2B software start-ups. 

The Macfarlanes team for this matter was led by investment management partner Stephen Robinson with assistance from solicitor Sweta Tandle and trainee solicitor Harry Middleton. Tax advice was provided by tax and reward partner Alicia Thomas and solicitor George Apps.

Stephen Robinson comments: “We are delighted to have been able to advise Dawn once again on their fourth successful fundraise. The closing of the oversubscribed fund within six months of launching demonstrates investors’ continued interest in European B2B Software even during uncertain economic times and highlights Dawn's standing in the market as a leading venture capitalist.”

Haakon Overli, Dawn Co-Founder and General Partner comments: “We are very pleased to have achieved a final close of Dawn IV at its hard cap. The Macfarlanes team once again provided invaluable advice and support throughout the entire process and it was a pleasure working with them again.”