Private equity firm expands in Birmingham with new 10-year lease
One of the longest established private equity houses in Birmingham is relocating to new space on the top floor of its existing office building.
Equistone Partners Europe has taken a 10-year lease on the 17th floor of Bank House in the Colmore Business District overlooking St Philip’s Square.
Equistone – the only international mid-market private equity office in the city – originally moved into Bank House in 1997 having opened the Birmingham office as the firm’s first regional office outside London in 1989.
In its latest move, Equistone has taken 1,200 sq. ft of Grade A space. Equistone is the longest-standing tenant in the building.
Paul Harper, partner at Equistone and a well-known figure in the region’s deal making community having joined the firm in 2006, said the relocation was strong evidence of Equistone’s commitment to Birmingham and the Midlands.
“Birmingham continues to grow as a leading UK centre for financial services – as evidenced in recent years by a number of expansions of existing firms and re-locations to the city. The city’s continuing development and growth of its professional services and financial community plus its central location, supports the city’s position as an important industrial and commercial hub.
“Birmingham has a vibrant eco system of financial and related professional services and is emerging as a world leading FinTech centre. It also has the largest business, professional and financial services sector outside London – with 10,350 companies – and this latest office move evidences our long-term outlook and our continuing commitment to the city and the region.
“We place strong value in having people on the ground in our core local markets. Regionally based expertise is important to us and our deep understanding of the business landscape has enabled us to successfully partner with some of the region’s leading entrepreneurial management teams.”
Equistone has been behind a number of deals in the region including the tertiary buyout of Inspired Thinking Group (ITG) and the buy-out of UK Power Reserve. Further afield, the Birmingham office has more recently played a leading role in the acquisition of Cambridge-headquartered Bulgin and London-headquartered Acuity Knowledge Partners.
This latest investment follows the appointment of Will Copeland during 2019 who joined Equistone’s Birmingham office from the Business Growth Fund in Birmingham, having originally trained at PwC in London and Birmingham.
