A strategic partnership built around acquisition origination

Smarter Capital has acquired a 50% stake in Acquisition Finder, cementing a strategic partnership with founder Joe Elsaghir.

Origination of acquisition opportunities has always been central to Smarter Capital's model, and Acquisition Finder has proven to be an invaluable solution in this area.

The company specialises in helping acquisitive businesses unlock exclusive, off-market deal flow by identifying, qualifying and connecting opportunities that match precise investment criteria.

Highly targeted off-market deal flow

Acquisition Finder reaches out directly to business owners and executives who meet a defined set of requirements, giving acquirers access to opportunities that may never reach the open market.

After working with multiple suppliers and testing different sourcing routes, Smarter Capital found that Acquisition Finder consistently delivered highly targeted opportunities.

The service has already generated several opportunities that progressed through to successful completion and continues to deliver approximately three to five off-market acquisition opportunities each week that meet Smarter Capital's evolving criteria.

A proven fit with Smarter Capital

Karl Paul said that after working with Joe and Acquisition Finder on a supplier basis for the previous year, it quickly became clear that both were an outstanding fit for Smarter Capital.

He highlighted the consistency and quality of the opportunities delivered and said the wider Executive Team is excited to work closely with Joe as Acquisition Finder enters its next phase of growth.

Evolving towards a scalable, technology-led model

Backed by Smarter Capital's technology capabilities and teams, and working closely with Chief Technology Officer Peter Howarth, Acquisition Finder will continue to develop a more technology-led operating model.

This evolution is intended to help the business scale its processes, improve efficiency and deliver greater value to both Smarter Capital and its external clients.

Key areas of development include

• Scaling targeted business-owner outreach.
• Improving opportunity qualification and matching.
• Using technology to support repeatable origination processes.
• Expanding the service for external acquisitive organisations.
• Developing broader B2B lead-generation capability.

Building on more than 100 sourced opportunities

Joe Elsaghir said that during the first year of working closely with Smarter Capital, Acquisition Finder sourced more than 100 off-market acquisition opportunities and supported dozens of live discussions.

He said the partnership brings together Smarter Capital's professionalism, technology expertise and broad B2B network with Acquisition Finder's specialist origination capability.

The investment will enable the business to help more companies source acquisitions while also expanding into wider B2B lead-generation services.

Expanding into B2B lead generation

As the partnership develops, Acquisition Finder plans to broaden its offer by introducing B2B lead-generation services.

This expanded capability will support Smarter Capital's portfolio companies while also serving a growing base of external clients seeking high-quality and carefully targeted commercial opportunities.

Securing a core part of Smarter Capital's strategy

The acquisition secures an important part of Smarter Capital's current and long-term strategy: finding the right businesses faster, with greater precision and at scale.

By bringing origination capability closer to the group and supporting its development through technology, Smarter Capital is strengthening the platform behind its acquisition-led growth model.