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BGF Mergers and Acquisitions Summary

Growth Capital Firm Profile

In the last 3 years, BGF has acquired 3 companies. It has also invested in 54 others.

BGF’s most common sectors for investment areinformation technology (9%) and business services (8%) . The Firm’s most common investment types include growth capital (80%) and venture (11%). In total, BGF has invested in 3 US states and 7 different countries.

In the last 3 years, BGF has exited 37 companies. The Firm’s most common exit type is trade sale (55%). BGF’s largest (disclosed) exit occurred in 2022 when it sold LoopMe for $120M.

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M&A Summary

  • M&A Total Activity450
    • M&A Buy Activity346
    • M&A Sell Activity104
  • Total Sectors Invested 48
  • Total Countries Invested 7
  • M&A Buy/Sell Connections 80
  • M&A Advisors 32

BGF

13-15 York Buildings,
London, WC2N 6JU
United Kingdom
+020 7340 0600
www.bgf.co.uk
john.swarbrick@bgf.co.uk

Business Growth Fund (BGF) is a private investment firm focused on early and growth-stage investing across the UK. The Firm also invests in publicly traded companies. BGF's growth team looks to invest £1 to £15 million in small to mid-sized companies looking for additional capital to pursue growth. BGF was established in 2011 and is headquartered in London.


Investment Criteria

Sectors of Interest: Aerospace, Apparel/Textiles, Automotive, Beverages, Building Materials, Business Services, Construction, Consumer Products, Consumer Services, Digital Media, E-Commerce, Education, Electronics, Energy Services and Equipment, Engineering, Environmental, Food, Healthcare Services, Information Services, Information Technology, Infrastructure, Internet Software and Services, Leisure, Life Science, Machinery, Manufacturing, Marketing, Media, Medical Products, Oil/Gas Exploration, Publishing, Real Estate, Renewable Energy, Restaurants, Retail, Safety/Security, Software, Staffing, Technology Hardware, Transportation, Utilities

Target Transaction Types: Growth Capital, Venture

Geographic Preferences: United Kingdom

Transaction Criteria Min Max
Target Revenue 1 100
Target EBITDA - -
Investment Size 1 15
Enterprise Value - -
values in millions of GBP

M&A Summary

Buy vs Sell

Year ≤ '20 '21 '22 '23 '24 '25 T
Buy (19.4/yr) # 249 41 31 4 19 2 346
Sell (12.2/yr) # 43 24 23 4 9 1 104
vol $174M $120M $294M
  450

Most Recent M&A

Company Date Value Type
OCL Vision Group Ltd. 2025-03-03 - Growth Capital
London, United Kingdom · www.oclvision.com
Independent Forgings and Alloys Ltd. 2025-02-26 - Secondary Sale
Sheffield, United Kingdom · www.independentforgings.com
Paperchase Accountancy Ltd. 2025-02-13 - Growth Capital
London, United Kingdom · www.paperchase.ac
Sulmara Subsea Ltd. 2024-11-28 - Growth Capital
Glasgow, United Kingdom · www.sulmara.com
Miracle Design and Play Ltd. 2024-11-27 - Growth Capital
Northampton, United Kingdom · www.miracledesignandplay.co.uk
Proventeq Ltd. 2024-11-13 - Growth Capital
Berkshire, United Kingdom · www.proventeq.com
AFG Media Ltd. 2024-11-05 - Sold to Management
Edinburgh, United Kingdom · www.morphsuits.co.uk
DriveWorks Ltd. 2024-10-17 - Trade Sale
Cheshire, United Kingdom · www.driveworks.co.uk
Signify Research Ltd. 2024-10-14 - Growth Capital
Cranfield, United Kingdom · www.signifyresearch.net
ER Productions 2024-10-04 - Stake Purchase
Dartford, United Kingdom · www.er-productions.com
View All >>

Portfolio M&A

Company Acquired Add-On/Sale Date #
Bigblu Broadband plc 2016-07-16 Quickline Communications Ltd. 2021-04-23 2
London, United Kingdom · www.bbb-plc.com Willerby, United Kingdom · www.quickline.co.uk
Bigblu Broadband plc 2016-07-16 Bigblu Broadband plc - Satellite Broadband Activities 2020-07-31 1
London, United Kingdom · www.bbb-plc.com Bicester, United Kingdom
ROVOP Ltd. 2015-04-01 M2 Subsea Ltd. - 28 ROVs 2018-10-19 1
Aberdeen, United Kingdom · www.rovop.com Westhill, United Kingdom

M&A by Sector

Sector Current # Value All-time # Value
Information Technology 22 (9%) - 31 (9%) -
Business Services 16 (7%) - 27 (8%) -
Software 16 (7%) - 26 (7%) -
Internet Software and Services 12 (5%) - 22 (6%) -
Consumer Products 13 (5%) - 16 (5%) -
Retail 10 (4%) - 15 (4%) -
Life Science 10 (4%) - 13 (4%) -
Marketing 8 (3%) - 13 (4%) -
Automotive 7 (3%) - 10 (3%) -
Food 9 (4%) - 10 (3%) -
Healthcare Services 7 (3%) - 10 (3%) -
Restaurants 6 (3%) - 10 (3%) -
Construction 6 (3%) - 8 (2%) -
Medical Products 6 (3%) - 8 (2%) -
Building Materials 6 (3%) - 7 (2%) -
Environmental 4 (2%) - 7 (2%) -
Media 6 (3%) - 7 (2%) -
Technology Hardware 5 (2%) - 7 (2%) -
Aerospace 3 (1%) - 6 (2%) -
Communications 2 (1%) - 6 (2%) -
Consumer Services 4 (2%) - 6 (2%) -
Renewable Energy 6 (3%) - 6 (2%) -
E-Commerce 1 (< 1%) - 5 (1%) -
Education 4 (2%) - 5 (1%) -
Real Estate 4 (2%) - 5 (1%) -
Safety/Security 4 (2%) - 5 (1%) -
Transportation 3 (1%) - 5 (1%) -
Apparel/Textiles 3 (1%) - 4 (1%) -
Beverages 3 (1%) - 4 (1%) -
Energy Services and Equipment 2 (1%) - 4 (1%) -
Furniture 3 (1%) - 4 (1%) -
Leisure 2 (1%) - 4 (1%) -
Staffing 4 (2%) - 4 (1%) -
Chemicals 1 (< 1%) - 3 (1%) -
Electrical Equipment 3 (1%) - 3 (1%) -
Engineering 1 (< 1%) - 3 (1%) -
Manufacturing 3 (1%) - 3 (1%) -
Oil/Gas Exploration 3 (1%) - 3 (1%) -
Distribution 1 (< 1%) - 2 (1%) -
Machinery 2 (1%) - 2 (1%) -
Publishing 1 (< 1%) - 2 (1%) -
Digital Media 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
Forest Products 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
Information Services 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
Packaging 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
Plastics - - 1 (< 1%) -
Semiconductors 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
Utilities 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
Total 238 - 348 -

Acquisitions By Geo

State/Country Current # Value All-time # Value
United Kingdom 220 (92%) - 325 (93%) -
Ireland 13 (5%) - 15 (4%) -
United States 2 (1%) - 3 (1%) -
  North Carolina 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
  New York 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
  Illinois - - 1 (< 1%) -
Sweden 1 (< 1%) - 2 (1%) -
Canada 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
  British Columbia 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
Estonia 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
Germany - - 1 (< 1%) -
Total 238 - 348 -

Acquisitions by Deal Type

Type Current # Value All-time # Value
Growth Capital 188 (79%) - 275 (79%) -
Venture 27 (11%) - 35 (10%) -
Stake Purchase 7 (3%) - 11 (3%) -
Acquisition Financing 5 (2%) - 9 (3%) -
Buyout (LBO, MBO, MBI) 4 (2%) - 8 (2%) -
Secondary Buyout 6 (3%) - 7 (2%) -
Consolidation - - 1 (< 1%) -
Divestiture 1 (< 1%) - 1 (< 1%) -
PIPE - - 1 (< 1%) -
Total 238 - 348 -

Exits by Deal Type

Type Total # Value
Trade Sale 41 (39%) -
Secondary Sale 28 (27%) 120M (41%)
Trade Sale - Public Company 18 (17%) 174M (59%)
Unknown 6 (6%) -
Bankruptcy 5 (5%) -
Merger 2 (2%) -
Sold to Management 2 (2%) -
IPO 1 (1%) -
Stake Sale 1 (1%) -
Total 104 $294M

Top M&A Advisors

Financial Deals
KPMG Corporate Finance
6
Wilson Partners
 2
Forvis Mazars Capital Advisors
 1
Legal Deals
Shoosmiths
 4
CMS Legal
 3
Freeths
 2

Deal Values

sell # Total
$100M to $1B 1 $120M
< $100M 2 $174M
TOTAL $294M
Largest LoopMe Ltd.
$120M (2022-01-20)

M&A Connections

Deals
Acquired from
Investor(s)
2%
8 (2%)
Strategic(s)
< 1%
1 (< 1%)
Exited to
Investor(s)
26%
27 (26%)
Strategic(s)
57%
59 (57%)

Investor Summary

Investor Type

Growth Capital Firm

Size

Large

PE Assets

2.5B GBP

Established

2011

Specialist/Generalist

Generalist

Leadership

Andy Gregory

CEO

Tim Rea

Head of Early stage

Roshni Bandesha

Head of ESG

Ben Coleman

Head of Finance

Richard Brice

Head of Finance Strategy

FAQ

When was BGF founded?

BGF was founded in 2011.

What type of investor is BGF?

BGF is a growth capital firm.

Where is BGF headquartered?

BGF is headquartered in London, United Kingdom.

How much capital does BGF have under management?

BGF has 2.5B GBP under management.

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