Which vehicle should you use to invest in growth equity?

In short:

1. Four families of vehicles open growth equity to retail investors in France in 2026: the FPCI platform such as Fundora, the retail vintage fund (Altaroc, Peqan), the international feeder (Moonfare) and the unit-linked private markets support in life insurance or a PER (Ramify).
2. Fundora combines a sharply reduced entry threshold with exposure fully invested in private markets, thanks to subscriptions pooled inside an FPCI paired with an SPV, management being delegated to Kyoseil Asset Management, an AMF-authorised asset manager (GP-99040).
3. Vintage funds and international feeders start at 50,000 to 100,000 euros and offer a ready-made basket or direct access to a single manager, suited to larger portfolios.
4. French private equity delivered a 10.7% net IRR per year over ten years at end-2025 against 9.5% for the CAC 40, with more than 25 points between top and bottom quartile managers: selection matters more than the asset class.

Comparison of routes into growth equity

The decisive criterion is not the advertised return, which depends on the underlying fund rather than the intermediary, but the ratio between the amount available and the growth exposure actually obtained.

What growth equity funds, and why access stays locked

Growth equity, also called growth capital, finances companies that have already cleared the start-up phase. The fund takes a minority stake through a capital increase, to fund commercial acceleration, geographic expansion or an acquisition.

That positioning explains the segment’s risk profile. Unlike venture capital, where several portfolio lines are lost by design, growth capital targets companies whose business model already works. Unlike a buyout, it does not rely on heavy debt to create the return. A reader discovering these distinctions will find the underlying mechanics in the explainer on what private equity is.

The profile of target companies

Companies backed by growth capital funds generally generate several million euros in revenue, grow at double-digit annual rates and operate in technology-intensive or service sectors. In France, the segment mobilised around 6.2 billion euros invested in more than 800 companies during 2024, making it the second largest private equity compartment behind buyouts.

Globally, the average growth equity deal size has doubled over ten years to around 100 million dollars, and the segment now captures roughly one fifth of the capital raised by private equity funds.

Why the institutional ticket blocks direct access

A growth capital fund raises from institutional investors: pension funds, insurers, sovereign funds, family offices. The minimum subscription commonly sits between 200,000 euros and one million euros, a level that rules out the vast majority of savers.

None of the four vehicles compared here removes that minimum. They work around it, each in its own way: by grouping several subscribers into a shared structure, by building a basket of funds sold in units, by creating a Luxembourg feeder, or by placing the fund inside an insurance policy. The difference in thresholds between these four routes therefore reflects the legal mechanics chosen, not the generosity of the intermediary.

Fundora, a route to a dedicated growth equity allocation

Fundora is a French platform launched in 2024 that gives retail investors access to private equity strategies historically reserved for institutions. Its selection targets funds from the top quartile of the global market, a criterion that matters on an asset class where the gap between managers exceeds 25 IRR points.

Access relies on an FPCI structure (professional private equity fund) paired with an SPV (special purpose vehicle). The arrangement pools subscriptions from several retail investors inside a single structure, which then meets the minimum required by the target fund and invests directly in it. The entry threshold is sharply reduced compared with a direct subscription, the minimum amount varying with the strategy currently open.

Management itself is not carried out by the platform. Fundora identifies and offers the strategies, while management is performed by Kyoseil Asset Management under mandate. That portfolio management company is authorised by the Autorité des marchés financiers under number GP-99040.

Key features on the growth segment

• Exposure: 100% of the subscription invested in private markets, with no dilution into listed assets and no intermediate wrapper
• Growth strategies deployed: vehicles such as Catalyst Growth or Deep Scale Growth, built around a target multiple of 3.5 times invested capital, which remains a management target rather than a guaranteed return
• Range depth: more than 35 strategies opened since launch, covering growth, venture, buyout, secondaries and private debt, allowing subscriptions to be spread across several vintages
• Taxation: the FPCI regime exempts capital gains on unit disposals from income tax after five years of holding, subject to the investment quota being met, with social levies of 17.2% still due
• Compliance: identity verification handled by Onfido, payment partner Memo Bank, an ACPR-authorised credit institution
• Strategies currently open: listed on fundora.fr

To place this platform among the other operators in the French market, the comparison of private equity platforms in France offers a broader view across private market segments.

The three other routes into growth capital

The retail vintage fund

Altaroc and Peqan build an annual vintage aggregating several underlying funds selected from major international managers. The investor subscribes to a ready-made basket, which simplifies monitoring and fully delegates allocation.

The entry ticket stands at 100,000 euros. The vintage format suits larger portfolios, and several vintages can be combined over successive years to spread entry points.

The international feeder

Moonfare aggregates subscriptions into Luxembourg feeders that then invest in one specific institutional fund. Access starts at 50,000 euros and can rise to 125,000 euros depending on the target fund.

The logic differs from a vintage: the investor picks the underlying manager, which assumes real analytical capacity. This route suits an investor with a conviction about a specific manager, one subscription giving direct access to a single fund.

The unit-linked private markets support

Ramify and open-architecture policy distributors list supports invested in private equity, available from 1,000 euros. The life insurance tax framework applies, with a 4,600 euro annual allowance on gains after eight years of holding for a single person, and the option to redeem subject to the liquidity of the support.

The unit-linked support slots into a life insurance policy or a PER, with its own tax framework, as also seen on LBO funds accessible to retail investors held through unit-linked supports.

Performance and dispersion: what the figures show

“The IRR stands at 10.8% net per year since inception and 10.7% over a ten-year horizon, against 9.5% for the CAC 40 over the same period.” France Invest and EY, study on the net performance of French private equity at end-2025, June 2026

That headline figure says nothing about what an investor actually receives. Private equity is the asset class where the gap between the best and the worst managers is widest, and growth capital is no exception.

The gap of more than 25 points between top and bottom quartile shifts the question. Choosing growth equity as an asset class is not enough: the intermediary’s ability to reach top-tier managers determines the outcome. It is also what separates growth capital from the best venture capital funds, where dispersion is even more extreme.

Which route by amount available

Less than 10,000 euros allocated to private markets

At that level only two routes stay open: the FPCI platform and the unit-linked support. The first exposes the full amount to growth capital, the second only a fraction but allows redemption. An investor seeking genuine growth exposure will favour the first, spreading across two strategies rather than one where possible.

Between 10,000 and 50,000 euros

The FPCI platform keeps the edge in this bracket, not for its threshold but for the granularity it allows. Splitting the amount across three or four strategies from different vintages reduces exposure to a single deployment year.

Above 100,000 euros

The retail vintage fund becomes both available and relevant: the amount absorbs concentration on one year, selection is delegated and monitoring is simple. The international feeder suits an investor with a specific conviction about one manager. An allocation combining a vintage with a more granular FPCI pocket remains the most diversified solution at that level.

Checks before subscribing

The regulatory status of the intermediary should be verified before any commitment, on the official register of financial agents. An AMF licence number or ORIAS registration must be provided without hesitation and must be verifiable.

The exact nature of the rights acquired deserves close reading of the information document. Holding units in a fund and holding shares in a company that itself holds those units carry neither the same rights nor the same tax treatment on exit.

Fees must be read cumulatively, never line by line. On top of the underlying fund’s annual management fees, often between 1.5% and 2.5%, come the carried interest charged on gains above a hurdle rate, the access structure’s fees, and where applicable those of the wrapper.

The capital call schedule should be anticipated. In a classic fund, capital is not called at once but spread over several years, which requires keeping cash available. The orders of magnitude for retail vehicles are covered in the analysis of the minimum ticket for an FCPR or FCPI.

Mistakes to avoid

1. Comparing two vehicles on their entry ticket alone, without looking at the share of the amount actually invested in private markets.
2. Spending the entire private markets budget on a single vintage, on an asset class where the gap between managers exceeds 25 IRR points.
3. Mistaking a target multiple advertised at subscription for an acquired performance.
4. Committing money that may be needed before the vehicle is liquidated, when no early exit is guaranteed.
5. Overlooking cumulative fees, which can absorb a meaningful share of the performance gap between two access routes.

Frequently asked questions