Private Equity Finance

Private equity investment can support management buyouts and management buy-ins of mature, profitable companies, enabling existing management teams to acquire a significant part of the company from the owners, or provide the opportunity for an executive team to purchase an interest in a business they have identified as an acquisition, or undertake a buy in.

Private equity can also be used by established businesses which require capital to further grow or make an acquisition with no change in senior people. Management can also benefit from bringing an experienced equity partner on board to help expand operations, fund acquisitions or enter new markets without giving up control over their business.

Finally, Private Equity can be used to help a public company return to private ownership, eliminating the costs of maintaining a public listing and relieving management from the pressure of meeting short term earnings targets.

An MBO is an alternative to the sale of a business to a larger or competitor business. It provides the option for the existing management team to acquire the business, with the support of a private equity investor, and may be an attractive solution for many business owners where an outright trade sale may not meet all their personal or financial objectives.

Often the quickest and least disruptive way of realising value, MBOs tend to come about when the founder or owner is looking to exit or realise some value in their investment, or when a corporate owner or parent company sees the business as being a non-core asset.

A private equity backed MBO can be a highly effective means of implementing ownership succession for a business, as it helps to ensure an easier transition to next generation owners and puts in place a strong foundation for continued growth. It also provides an attractive opportunity for a management team to share in the benefits of business ownership.

A business owner may wish to realise some of the value of their holding in the business, whether to de risk their personal ownership position, or facilitate an exit for departing or retiring members of the senior management team who hold equity in the business. Private equity can unlock the value of a business, allowing the existing shareholders to realise value, while putting equity in the hands of key executives who will drive future growth.

• Private equity firms invest in people – the integrity and capability of the management team is the most critical factor when assessing every potential new investment.
• Detailed financial projections – the business plan and forecasts will be scrutinised and carefully assessed to determine the prospects for the business, in context of the wider market opportunity for the underlying product or services.
• Relevant market analysis – this analysis will help to better understand the opportunity for a business’s products or services and the achievability of the plan to develop and grow market share.

There is often a misconception that owners will relinquish control of their business to a private equity investor. At Maven, whilst we will take an active interest we back management teams to continue running each business with the shared mutual goal for all parties of increase shareholder value. A Management team has the reassurance of knowing that they have a supportive investor backing their development plans and who will provide strategic and commercial expertise and advice if it is required.

In working with Maven you will be partnering with one of the UK's most active investors of high growth businesses with a proven track record of supporting a diverse range of growth strategies, including management buyouts, buy and build, or pre-IPO finance.