Where OceanSound wants to spend its new $780M fund
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By
Ross Wilkers
Private equity firm OceanSound Partners currently backs two government technology companies and is looking for more opportunities in the market with the closure of its inaugural fund, which blew past the target.
Two years after entering the government market, private equity firm OceanSound Partners has a new fund ready to go in support of further acquisitions.
OceanSound said Tuesday its inaugural fund has closed with $780 million in capital commitments, which puts the final raise at well above the goal of $550 million.
Since its launch in 2019, OceanSound has invested in two companies that predominantly operate in the government market and three that work in other highly-regulated sectors. From there, those portfolio companies have made nine acquisitions altogether.
The OceanSound government market portfolio consists of Digital Management Inc. and SMX, which OceanSound respectively backed in the fall of last year and Winter 2019.
DMI chose OceanSound over other potential buyers because of the potential to realize growth in both federal and commercial markets, Founder and CEO Sunny Bajaj told us in a November episode of our Project 38 podcast.
SMX’s branding and identity as the market knows it today was unveiled in Fall 2021, just less than two years after OceanSound acquired the IT contractor when it was known as Smartronix.
OceanSound has since supported three acquisitions of SMX’s including Trident Technologies, Datastrong and C2S Consulting Group.
The goal for finding new investment opportunities remains the same for OceanSound: find successful companies at the intersection of government and other enterprise markets that are ready for their next phase of growth through a structured build, improve and grow process.
OceanSound's founding and senior leadership group comprises of two former Veritas Capital executives in Joe Benavides and Jeff Kelly, plus a veteran of Blackstone Group in Ted Coons.
New York City-headquartered OceanSound manages $1.15 billion in regulatory assets under management. The firm typically invests between $75 million and $300 million through controlling ownership positions in companies valued anywhere from $150 million to $750 million.
Sixpoint Partners acted as the exclusive placement agent. Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP was legal counsel for OceanSound.