Abenex, a leading European private equity player, announces the appointment of Caroline Folleas.
Caroline Folleas joins Abenex as Partner within the Mid Cap team. She brings 25 years of experience, including 18 years in private equity and seven years in investment banking. Her international background has led her to work across France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Argentina and Germany.
She joins Abenex’s Mid Cap team, now composed of 15 professionals across four offices in France (Paris, Lyon), Amsterdam and Milan. She will contribute to the deployment of the sixth-generation Mid Cap Fund, which successfully completed its first exit at the end of 2025 and has already completed 11 investments across France, Italy and the Benelux.
The appointment of Caroline Folleas marks a new step in strengthening the team. Her sector expertise in Health & Wellness reinforces our ability to identify and support leading companies in growing markets. She has developed strong expertise in sectors driven by long-term secular trends — such as Elevate quality of life — which are at the core of Abenex’s investment strategy.
Prior to joining Abenex, Caroline was a Partner at Cathay Capital Private Equity in Paris, where she oversaw investments in the Healthcare sector. She was involved in Mid and Small Cap transactions, both majority and minority. She notably contributed to the development of Cathay in Southern Europe and served on the boards of several portfolio companies.
She previously was a Partner at Mérieux Equity Partners, a healthcare-focused fund, where she contributed to the fundraising and deployment of a €570 million fund, and completed an investment in a leading global SaaS / AI company. Before joining Abenex, Caroline spent 13 years within L Catterton’s European team, the world’s largest consumer-focused private equity firm, with $35bn in assets under management and backed by LVMH. She was involved in around ten mid-cap transactions across France, Italy and the UK, driving the international expansion of local champions. It was during this time that Caroline first worked with Abenex, through a successful joint investment.
Caroline began her career at BNP Paribas on the trading floor, where she worked in FX derivatives sales in Argentina, before transitioning to Leveraged Finance in Milan and Paris. Caroline is also committed to promoting gender diversity in private equity. She has chaired Level 20 in France since its inception and serves on France Invest’s Talent and Diversity Committee. Caroline graduated from ESCP Business School.
Patrice Verrier and Olivier Moatti, Managing Partners, commented: “Caroline Folleas’ appointment strengthens our ability to originate and execute transactions in a complex environment. It fully aligns with our ambition to continue developing our Mid Cap activity, particularly ahead of the launch of our seventh vintage. Her strong private equity track record, sector positioning and international background are key assets to support European companies in their growth and value creation strategies.”
Mathieu Mauhourat and Sander de Lange, Mid Cap Partners, added: “Caroline brings recognized expertise in identifying and supporting companies positioned in attractive markets, with a strong ability to structure complex transactions and support management teams in value creation. We are delighted to welcome her to the team.”
Caroline Folleas, Partner, added: “I am delighted to join Abenex at a key stage in the development of its Mid Cap strategy. The combination of a strong institutional platform and a demanding entrepreneurial and operational approach strongly resonates with my background and my convictions as an investor.”
