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While these are still preliminary figures (as some deals remain confidential or unreported), the data already reveals interesting regional and sector trends:
- Europe has emerged as the most active region in 2025, with 28 completed deals year-to-date (3Q YTD), representing over half of all SF acquisitions worldwide.
- Spain is the most active country in Europe, with 8 acquisitions, followed by the UK (5 deals), and Italy and Germany (4 deals each).
- The USA remains the single most active country, doubling Spain’s activity, which makes Spain currently the second most active country globally.
- Latin America and Asia have completed fewer than 10 deals so far this year, but the growing number of searchers in these regions is expected to strengthen their activity over the next two years.
Exits:
The great news is that exits continue globally, with strong performance trends. Notably, Spain stands out with 8 exits, most of them generating excellent returns for investors. Other significant exit activity occurred in the USA, Brazil (5 exits) and Poland (2 exits). In total, approximately 20 companies previously acquired by SFs have been sold over the past nine months, with several deals achieving multiples above 5x and IRRs exceeding 50%. This signals a clear trend toward very positive outcomes, highlighting the growing maturity and high performance of this asset class.
Sectors & Size:
In Europe, industrial acquisitions have played a prominent role this year, alongside strong activity in B2B services, HVAC, software, gardening, defense, agro, logistics, healthcare, and distribution.
The average deal was around €10–15M EV in past years. In 2025, we are witnessing several deals exceeding €30M EV, reflecting the ambitions of some searchers to target companies with €4–5M, or even higher EBITDA. This will likely lead to an increase in the size of the medium deal.
Below is the full list of acquisitions completed in 3Q YTD 2025:
| Target | Country | Sector | Search Fund |
| AlpinEnergie | Austria | B2B energy brokerage serving SMEs | ASPEON Partners |
| Pharmacom Handels / Binder Pharmaservices | Austria | Pharmaceutical distribution | Lacus Legacy |
| Apoplex Medical Technologies GmbH | Germany | MedTech SaaS company that offers ECG-based solutions to hospitals | Inderwies Unternehmensnachfolge |
| EZS Identtechnik | Germany | Provider of labels and marking solutions | Kripp & Stanjek Unternehmensnachfolge |
| KKD GmbH | Germany | Leading fleet service provider | Konkordia |
| SOS Software Service | Germany | Software distribution | Niemann Mittelstandsnachfolge |
| Napolillo Industry | Italy | Industrial laundry services | Fitex Capital |
| New Roglass | Italy | Industrial company active in glass recycling | Cassandra Investments |
| Savet | Italy | Design and maintenance of green spaces | Octans Capital |
| Stilef | Italy | Cardboard packaging solutions | Atlas Partners |
| Socho IT | Netherlands | Software for publishers and media companies | Ventus Succession (self-funded) |
| Zeker & Mobiel | Netherlands | Plumbing company | Tasman Succession |
| ICEA | Poland | Leading SEO/SEM agency | Lynx Trail Capital |
| Rolfroz | Poland | Producer of vegetable and fruit concentrates | Cedo Capital |
| GSE Composystem & Setroson | Spain | Manufacturer in the Aerospace & Defense industry | Phoenix Aerospace |
| Gutmar | Spain | Engineering and high-precision mechanical manufacturing | Lauria Partners |
| La Sala | Spain | Agro – grafted horticultural plants | Anval Capital |
| Let’s Health | Spain | Healthcare marketing and communication | Acacia Capital |
| Manufacturas Deportivas | Spain | Design & manufacturing of playground equipment, urban furniture & sports equipment | Albor Capital |
| Nextclima (Termotur / Airnou) | Spain | HVAC companies | Terra Firma Capital |
| Pentatel Comunicaciones | Spain | Technology consulting and project integration | Sisal Capital (self-funded) |
| Plásticos Hernanz | Spain | Plastic injection molding (reusable plastic cups) | KG Capital |
| Tollco | Sweden | Water damage prevention products | Black Fox Invest |
| Paul Mathew Transport Ltd | UK | Logistics company providing specialist transportation and warehousing services | NCA (Eyal Kaplan) |
| Rhino Greenhouses Direct | UK | Manufacturer of premium greenhouses | Kantic Capital & Mirable Group (self-funded) |
| Rowleys of Northwich | UK | Provider of contract hire and fleet management services for commercial vehicles | Mentmore Capital Partners (self-funded) |
| Scottish Everlastings | UK | Supplier of artificial florals and home accessories | Heronshaw Group (self-funded) |
| Vistafolia | UK | Artificial planting solutions | Profectus Capital |
The market is clearly maturing, and performance metrics confirm the potential of SFs as a high-performing investment class. There is a huge number of potential deals expected to close in Q4, suggesting another record year if current trends continue.
