Birmingham duo crowned as Midlands’ most active dealmakers

LAW firm Gateley and accountants Grant Thornton have been declared the most active advisers in the Midlands deal community.

The accolade comes from Experian Corpfin’s annual league table report.

Gateley starts the year as the most active legal advisor by deal volume for the second year running. It also finished in the top three nationally and has advised on more than 250 deals with an aggregate value of £1.8bn.

Last week Gateley advised management on the sale of the NEC Group to LDC in a £307m deal.

Paul Cliff, corporate partner for Gateley in Birmingham, said: “Leading the league table two years in a row is a clear indication of how active we have been regionally as the market has started a steady recovery.

“With a General Election on the horizon there’s sure to be residual uncertainty but the overall sentiment is one of cautious optimism for the year ahead.”

Grant Thornton, meanwhile, has been confirmed as the number one financial adviser to UK companies by deal volume for the third year in a row.

The firm advised on 136 deals in 2014.

The national success has been replicated locally with the Midlands team advising on more than 30 transactions during 2014, worth a total of around £815m.

The Midlands team advised on four deals during December, including providing support to Esendex on the acquisition of Collstream, a SMS, voice messaging and interactive voice response solutions provider.

Birmingham-based Geoff Davies, head of Grant Thornton’s advisory business in the Midlands, said: “It’s a great accomplishment to have attained the position as the number one financial adviser in the Midlands.”