UI Investissement

Jean-Philippe Richaud serves as Managing Director and leads the investment committee, a role he has held since 1997. Sector-specific decisions are delegated to dedicated team heads overseeing healthcare, agri-food, and industrial practices. The firm's regional Lyon office maintains autonomy in originating and executing Rhône-Alpes transactions.

UI Investissement sources deals through its long-standing relationships with French regional banks — Crédit Agricole, Banque Populaire, and Caisse d'Epargne — that co-founded the firm in 1967. The Lyon office has independent origination authority and focuses on family-owned industrial companies in the Rhône-Alpes corridor that are underrepresented in Paris-centric auction processes.

UI Investissement is a classic French private equity fund manager — not a family office. It raises discretionary institutional funds from banks, insurers, and public investment vehicles like Bpifrance, then deploys capital into mid-market French companies. The firm has no affiliation with a single wealth creator.

UI Investissement executes direct equity investments, co-investments alongside regional banking partners, and manages third-party institutional mandates. The firm also operates UI Ventures, a dedicated venture capital program for early-stage deeptech and health startups, which takes minority positions rather than fund-of-funds commitments.

The firm covers the full spectrum: seed and start-up through UI Ventures; growth equity for profitable mid-market companies; majority buyouts for succession-driven transactions; and restructuring or turnaround mandates for underperforming industrial assets. The recently closed UI Gestion 4 fund focuses specifically on buy-and-build platforms in agri-food and healthcare.

UI Investissement does not invest in real estate, financial services, pure-play software companies, or extractive industries. The firm has historically avoided Paris-centric tech hype cycles, favoring traditional industrial sectors where its regional origination network provides a competitive advantage.

The firm actively welcomes co-investors on larger transactions, particularly European mid-market funds seeking French operational partners. UI Investissement has co-invested alongside Crédit Agricole Private Equity and Bpifrance on several healthcare consolidation platforms, sharing governance and board seats proportionally.