Australia's Quadrant loses growth fund head
Justin Ryan, a managing partner at Quadrant Private Equity and latterly head of the Australian firm’s growth strategy, is stepping back from day-to-day investment activity.
His departure was first reported by The Australian Financial Review (AFR) and then confirmed by Ryan in a LinkedIn post. No details were given as to Ryan’s next move, but he will remain chairman of online beauty products retailer Adore Beauty and industrial goods auction platform Grays.
Ryan joined Quadrant in 2011, having previously worked for garage door maker Alesco Corporation and Catalyst Investment Managers. He was promoted to managing partner in 2015 alongside Marcus Darville, with founder Chris Hadley becoming executive chairman. Ryan took the lead when Quadrant launched a growth strategy in 2019, raising a debut fund of A$400 million ($285 million).
The private equity firm closed its latest flagship buyout fund at A$1.24 billion late last year. A second growth fund is imminent, with the first now almost fully deployed. Hadley told LPs that Ryan was unable to commit to another 10-year fund cycle, AFR reported. The growth team is now led by Simon Pither, with Darville – who primarily focuses on the buyout fund – assisting as required.
Quadrant launched the growth strategy to address lower middle-market opportunities that were being overlooked as its buyout funds became larger with each vintage. It writes checks of A$30-50 million for minority and control positions.
Investments made to date include baby care brand Love to Dream, phone mount business Quad Lock, fashion brand ModiBodi, and the enterprise services division of Arc Group, as well as Adore and Grays. A first partial exit came last year, when Adore completed a A$270 million IPO. Quadrant took A$137.7 million off the table, reducing its stake from 57.8% to 32.5%.
Ryan claims to have led or co-led 21 deals during his private equity career, deploying A$1.53 billion. Those investments have generated a 2.5x multiple and a 39.1% IRR, based on realized and unrealized positions. There have been full or partial exits from 14 investments, with cash distributions of A$3 billion.
At Quadrant alone, Ryan led or co-led 15 deals, resulting in six full exits and three partial exits.
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