Clearwater sees deal values increase by more than 50% year on year
BIRMINGHAM-based advisory firm Clearwater Corporate Finance is celebrating a successful 2013. The firm has completed 28 deals with a total value of over £750m – a more than 50% increase on 2012.
Key deals advised on by Clearwater during 2013 include the sale of Gill Marine, a leading clothing brand, to YFM Equity Partners, the refinancing of holiday park business Park Resorts and the subsequent acquisition of South Lakeland Parks, LDC’s private equity investment in clothing brand Joules and the sale of software business CSC to US-based Trimble Navigation.
The firm’s managing partner Phil Burns said: “We are delighted with our performance in 2013. Our activity levels show us increasing our market share but also benefiting from a more general improvement in deal appetite in the market. We expect this trend to continue in 2014.”
Private equity continues to be a key source of deal flow for Clearwater with 18 completed transactions (64%), pointing to increased activity from this industry.
The firm’s international focus continues to mature with eight cross-border transactions in 2013. IMAP, of which Clearwater is the UK partner, expects to close more than 200 deals globally in 2013.
Clearwater’s debt advisory practice was involved in ten transactions, including both new debt for fresh private equity investments and a number of refinancing arrangements for both corporate and private equity backed clients.
