Steve Cohen’s Point72 Asset Management raised $600 million for its first private equity fund that will use artificial intelligence to modernize and improve efficiencies at companies it acquires.
The vehicle, called Point72 Hyperscale, will take majority stakes in companies in fragmented industries with high turnover and low margins, Co-Managing Partner Dan Gwak said in an interview. The funds raised include client cash as well as money from Cohen, who is a significant investor, according to a person familiar with the matter.
“We’re targeting a fairly focused initial portfolio of a half-dozen to 10 or so initial investments” over an investment period of four to five years, said Gwak, who runs Hyperscale along with Sri Chandrasekar.
Cohen had sought to raise $500 million to $900 million for Hyperscale, Bloomberg reported previously.
The firm’s private investments to date have been made through Point72 Ventures, which was founded in 2016 and invests only Cohen’s cash in early-stage technology startups. It has invested more than $800 million in scores of companies, including some cryptocurrency-related businesses.
Earlier this year, the firm launched Point72 Private Investments — the unit that houses Ventures and Hyperscale — and tapped Gwak to lead it.
