Cowgills delivers over £160m of corporate finance deals

Cowgills corporate finance team has delivered deals with an enterprise value of over £160m in the last twelve months, up 48% year-on-year and with £84.5m transacted in the final quarter of 2020 alone.

As a result of the continued growth of Cowgills corporate finance the team has recruited Brad Seekings as corporate finance manager who has joined from Grant Thornton and is set to make further appointments in January.

During the pandemic the debt advisory team raised CBILS and asset-based debt funding of £47.5m supporting more than thirty clients.   In the last quarter of 2020 Cowgills saw a surge in demand from entrepreneurs and business owner managers to capitalize on COVID related growth opportunities.

In addition, the strong appetite from trade and private equity for acquirors has led to more shareholders looking to exit. Cowgills launched ten new projects in the final quarter of 2020, with a strong focus on technology, media, healthcare, ecommerce and the supply chain that service these markets.

Commenting on the growth of the business during 2020, Cowgills corporate finance partner Ian Johnson said: “We are consistently winning work from both boutique and the ‘Big 4’ accountancy firms and are in the top ten list of North West financial advisors on the Experian M&A review. That success is partly down to delivering a highly integrated offering across multiple service lines within the business and also a result of the strength of the long-term relationships we build with both our clients and investors. Now is a great opportunity for Cowgills to invest in the next generation of new talent and we are excited to welcome Brad to the team.

“Last year was incredibly tough year for everyone in business but it is really encouraging to know that  banks and private equity investors have confidence in the market and are continuing to invest in growing and entrepreneurial businesses. We are seeing particular strength in the technology and healthcare sectors which continue to attract investment and this market alone accounted for £80m of the deals we delivered in 2020.”

Cowgills has a well-established and highly experienced, 17 strong corporate finance team led by Ian Johnson, Sam Davies and managing partner Paul Stringer. Last year the team tripled its footprint in Manchester moving to Allied London’s ABC building on Quay Street in Manchester’s Spinningfields.

Sam Davies added: “Our £250m pipeline of ‘in progress’ deals has tripled in the last twelve months, this has grown on the back of our strong reputation within mid-market private equity and delivering market leading valuations for our clients.”

Commenting on the corporate finance team’s success managing partner Paul Stringer added: “Sam is the youngest partner in Cowgills, which is down to his dedication to win and deliver deals in a challenging and competitive market. He is supported by an incredibly capable team which is focused on helping businesses to achieve its full growth potential. As well as delivering a high volume of deals we are providing strategic and financial modelling advice to clients to help them plan for the challenges this year will inevitably bring while we continue to deal with the impact of COVID on the economy. We are looking forward to a positive 2021.”