Sustainability the attraction for IT carve-out
Our weekly free round up of key deals and major moves in the Rainmakers world
Hello Rainmakers,
It’s been a quieter working week, as well as a shorter one, but a few decent deals got away.
We were also first with the news of where the former Zeus CEO Nick Cowles has ended up. The man with the best kept garden in the North started at Alvarez and Marsal this week.
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Carve out specialist Inspirit Capital has acquired Converge UK, an IT reseller, from its former Canadian parent.
The deal has been backed by an asset based lending (ABL) facility from Shawbrook.
Founded in 1991, Stafford-based Converge UK sells IT equipment and software and also handles the disposal of old equipment for its customers across education, public and private sectors. According to Inspirit, the business has “revenues in excess of £150m” and its annual accounts to the end of 2024 show it made pre-tax profits of £8.5m.
Converge UK’s Canadian parent group was itself bought by HIG Capital last year, and changed its name from Converge to Pellera Technologies.
In the year to the end of 2024 the UK business made pre-tax profits of £8.5m.
Introduced by EY Capital & Debt Advisory, Shawbrook’s package includes invoice discounting and a cashflow loan.
London-based Inspirit specialises in acquiring businesses that are no longer core to their parent company’s strategic objectives and require a different ownership structure to achieve their full potential. Ed Beazley, Investment Manager said the sustainability angle was a key differentiating factor.
“Converge UK is a high-quality business with a strong market position, differentiated through its sustainable, end-to-end lifecycle offering and deep customer relationships,” he said.
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Ground engineering specialist Van Elle is on firm foundations for a takeover, with Strabag UK lining up a £58.8m all-cash deal to dig deeper into the UK market.
The offer lands at a hefty premium for shareholders and is expected to be completed by the end of June, paving the way for the Nottinghamshire firm to delist from AIM and slot into a bigger construction powerhouse.
Strabag said the move will cement its UK growth plans, adding Van Elle’s geotechnical expertise across key sectors including energy, water and transport - while creating a more vertically integrated operation.
With backing already secured from major shareholders, the deal is piling up momentum as both firms look to build on complementary strengths and drive future growth.
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Nick Cowles started work this week at consultancy firm Alvarez and Marsal, alongside corporate financier Jonathan Boyers.
As reported on TheBusinessDesk.com last week the former Zeus Capital CEO has now joined A&M as Managing Director in the EMEA Corporate Finance division, where he will lead the Public Company Advisory Group.
In September TheBusinessDesk.com also broke the exclusive news that Cowles had resigned from Zeus Capital, the corporate finance advisory business he joined as a graduate 22 years ago, but at the time he was tight lipped about his likely destination.
And last week we were the first to reveal that it was A&M.
Cowles said on LinkedIn: “Following a refreshing few months out, during which I spent valuable time with family and friends, I’m fully recharged and energised for this exciting new chapter.”
He revealed that he has been impressed by the leadership of Jonathan Boyers, to build “a market-leading international corporate finance practice”.
“I see a clear gap in the market for an independent, high-quality, and experienced PLC advisory team-one that can deliver hands-on, expert guidance to public company boards, as well as to founders, management teams, and private equity sponsors navigating public market situations. Combined with A&M’s impressive global platform, access to international buyers and investors, and deep sector expertise, this creates a distinctive, best-in-class proposition.
“The team is ambitious, driven, entrepreneurial, and highly focused on building a global, market-leading business. I’m looking forward to getting to know more colleagues and exploring how we can collaborate to add meaningful value to clients.
“I’m particularly excited about building a Public Company Advisory team that can establish a leading position both in the UK and internationally,” Cowles said.
Welcoming Cowles to the team, and launching this new group within the business, Boyers said: “The launch of our Public Company Advisory Group marks an important step in the continued growth of our Corporate Finance business. We have built strong momentum advising founders, entrepreneurs and private equity sponsors in the mid-market, and this enhances our ability to support a wider range of clients, including listed companies and those preparing to access the public markets.
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Sedulo Group has expanded into Scotland with the acquisition of Kilmarnock-based accountancy practice, Smith & Wallace, and the launch of a Glasgow office.
Manchester-based business consultancy, Sedulo, has not divulged the acquisition price.
Its expansion adds to its existing offices in Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Birmingham, London and Dubai.
Following the acquisition, the group employs almost 250 advisors.
The business recently reported record annual revenues, approaching £25m, and has set out plans to double in size over the next four years.
Expanding into new regions is a core part of that growth strategy, with Scotland representing a significant next step.
Smith & Wallace is an accountancy practice based out of Kilmarnock with growing revenues in excess of £1m, led by Andrew McMorland and Martin Farrell, who will continue leading the business.
They will be joined by Logan Rowan, who leads Sedulo’s Deal Advisory team, having joined two years ago from KPMG.
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Upholstery designer Mobus Fabrics has completed a management buyout (MBO) which sees its senior leadership team take full ownership of the business.
The deal hands control to managing director Lee Paxman, sales director Sam Thornber and finance director Elliot Moody, positioning the company for its next phase of growth while ensuring continuity across its operations and customer base.
The trio, who bring decades of combined experience within the business, said the transition marks a significant milestone for the company as it looks to build on its established market position.
Paxman said: “This is an exciting new chapter for Mobus Fabrics. The management buyout not only secures the company’s future but also reinforces our commitment to our employees, customers and partners. We are immensely proud of our heritage, and this transition allows us to continue building a strong, forward-looking business.”
Founded in 1994 by Michael Presley and Grant McConnell, Mobus Fabrics has developed into a well-established supplier to the furniture and upholstery sector, providing both bespoke and stock-supported fabric collections to wholesalers, manufacturers and retailers in the UK and overseas.
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Bristol-based Narwhal Labs has raised £20m from UK investors to launch a platform it says will replace “fragmented, human-led response models” with always-on, autonomous AI.
The DeepBlue OS pioneering autonomous communications platform manages the full lifecycle of communications across voice, SMS, email and WhatsApp through a unified intelligence layer.
Operating autonomously 24 hours a day, it handles inquiries, qualifying contacts, booking appointments, chasing documents, routing requests and executing follow-up workflows without human intervention.
The funding round included backing from Jonathan Swann, former director of CFC Underwriting.
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