First Capital Partners was founded in 2006 as a subsidiary of First National of Nebraska, Inc., which is the largest privately-owned banking institution in the U.S. with assets in excess of $21 billion.  Initially, the firm operated as part of First National’s investment banking operations and invested in six companies to form its Fund I. 

In 2011, First Capital Partners was spun out of First National of Nebraska to become majority-owned by its senior executives concurrently with the firm forming its second fund, FCP Fund II, L.P., which has $91 million in committed capital.  The First National Bank of Omaha (the flagship bank of First National of Nebraska) is a limited partner in FCP Fund II and was joined by a number of other institutional and individual investors.  FCP Fund II operates as a small business investment company (“SBIC”) that is licensed by the U.S. Small Business Administration.    

In 2018, based on the success of its first two funds, First Capital Partners closed on FCP Fund III, L.P., which has $150 million of committed capital.  FCP Fund III is also licensed by the SBA to operate as a SBIC and the First National Bank of Omaha is a limited partner along with a number of other institutional and individual investors.

Since our founding our investment strategy has remained constant—to provide both mezzanine debt and equity to successful small and medium-sized businesses in a state of transition.  We are committed to helping businesses build on their success by providing both capital and a deep bench of engaged professionals whose experience and guidance can add value to lower middle-market companies.

Our investments and roles within a transaction are diverse, yet with a common theme of helping small and medium-sized businesses achieve their full potential.  We seek to support management teams that are capable of taking their company to the “next level” and have the openness to realize the economic and strategic benefits of implementing best practices in order to create business value. 

We have broad flexibility in our financing solutions, from mezzanine-only loans to investments where 40% to 50% of our capital may be invested in equity and we have a large ownership stake in a company.  Although our flexibility in providing various capital solutions differentiates our firm from many other investment firms, we view this to be secondary to getting to know a business and the people around it so we can tailor our solutions to the situation. 

Each opportunity is different and, as a result, each of our capital solutions are different.  The experience of our investment professionals enables us to fluidly apply the right capital solution and the appropriate level of engagement to each situation in order to achieve a result that works for each stakeholder.