The Hague, 1 September 2026 – Juno Investment Partners today announces the merger of the Juno Continuation Fund (JCF) into the larger Juno Selection Fund (JSF), effective immediately. This consolidation brings all investment activities and expertise back together in Juno’s flagship fund, with which Juno began in 2008. Founders Lennart Smits and Frans Jurgens have managed the JSF since its inception. Together with Bobby Bader, they are now once again focusing entirely on a single concentrated portfolio of Europe’s strongest smaller listed family businesses.

Rationale for the fund merger

At the end of 2018, the JSF was closed to new inflows because its assets under management (AUM) had grown too large for the fund to trade flexibly in smaller companies. To continue providing investors with access to the Juno investment philosophy, the JCF was established in January 2020. This fund focused on larger market capitalisations and was managed by a separate team.

The timing proved unfortunate. The JCF launched during a period of negative interest rates in the capital markets and historically high valuations for quality growth stocks. From 2021 onwards, interest rates rose rapidly, putting pressure on the valuations of these predictable companies. Market attention shifted towards less predictable sectors, such as banking, defence and the semiconductor industry, in which Juno was intentionally underweight because of their limited predictability over the medium term.

Partly as a result of these headwinds, performance lagged expectations and the JCF did not achieve sufficient scale to remain viable as a standalone fund. Following the merger, the investment style of the Selection Fund remains unchanged. The fund remains closed to new participants, though existing investors can continue to make top-up investments.

A more attractive entry point

“The experience gained over the past few years has enabled us to refine our selection process further, and we see excellent opportunities, especially now,” says Frans Jurgens. “The share prices of many smaller European family businesses have for some time now failed to keep pace with their operational progress. As a result, the balance between quality and valuation has become significantly more attractive. The fact that founders and insiders at our portfolio companies are themselves now buying additional shares on a significant scale, is a strong signal to us.”

“Our strength lies in giving our undivided attention to a select number of companies. In a sense, we approach listed family businesses as a private equity investor would, but with the advantages of public markets: transparency and liquidity, without the pressure of a forced exit,” adds Lennart Smits.

“Juno is approaching its twentieth anniversary with the same core philosophy with which we began,” concludes Frans Jurgens. “Our foundation remains the selection of non-cyclical, exceptional listed family businesses. We are now applying this approach, drawing on the lessons of recent years, at more attractive valuations and with the full attention of one team focused on one fund.”

About Juno Investment Partners

Juno Investment Partners is an independent asset manager based in The Hague. Juno invests in concentrated portfolios of high-quality European listed companies, often family-owned businesses or companies in which founders and directors are shareholders. The selection process emphasises predictable earnings growth, a high return on invested capital, low debt levels, strong margins and free cash flow, and a sustainable competitive advantage.

Launched in January 2008, the Juno Selection Fund focuses on small- and mid-cap European companies. The portfolio typically consists of around fifteen companies. Each is analysed intensively, and regular contact is maintained with management. The investment horizon is long, generally well over five years. Juno’s analysts, portfolio managers and employees also invest their personal capital in the JSF.

In addition to the JSF, Juno offers individually managed accounts through separate mandates, using the same investment approach. Juno holds an AIFM licence issued by the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM).