A few months after the launch of the SF in Ireland, it’s now Scotland’s turn to inaugurate its first one

At the beginning of 2023, Sam Batran, in partnership with a group of leading Irish, British, and international well-known investors, established Forás Capital, Ireland’s first SF. Edinburgh-born entrepreneur Nick Hodgson imitated his colleague and has launched the country’s first SF, Tinto Hill, raising an initial £390k from a group of 15 international investors, including AIJ Global, Aurica Capital, Cerralvo Capital, Evolutiq, Itaca Capital Partners, JB46, Moonbase Capital, Scipio Holding or TMB3, among others.

With an MBA with distinction, over the past decade, Nick has worked as a manager and leader in a variety of professional settings. These include leading growth and operations teams at start-ups, scale-ups and corporates in the UK and Europe in companies such as Deliveroo, Houst (formerly Airsorted) and Awaze. He is looking to acquire a business with EBITDA ranging from £1M-£5M, high quality recurring revenues, healthy margins, with an enterprise value of up to £50M.

With this being the first SF in Scotland, Nick told us: “I’m educating the market (including brokers, river guides and target business owners) on what SFs are and how they offer a credible and viable solution where owners are looking to exit, especially where there is a succession challenge”.