Subscribe to unlock this article
Thanks for your support.
The French market is booming, as we noted earlier this year in our analysis published in Search Funds News. Despite its brief history of just 5 years, about 15 operations have already been completed, the most recent being the acquisition of Flying Eye by Mahogany Capital at the beginning of the year.
However, one of the French market’s main shortcomings is the lack of a strong institutional investor to help boost the sector. There are very few active French investors in this segment, with the main ones being a couple of family offices (Enowe and Caméléon Invest), private investor Pierre-Paul Benoit, and some former searchers who are now operating their companies. Among these, Bruno Lea is the most active in supporting new SFs. Pierre-Paul Benoit has long advocated that France should have at least a couple of active funds to support the growth of the search fund market, and he is heavily promoting this asset class. This promotion could lead some of his associates to come together and start a fund.
Additionally, we have learned that Guillaume Raux, formerly of Naxicap, plans to create the first French SF investment fund called EPA Investissements (Entrepreneuriat par acquisitions). His initiative is currently in its initial phase, but we can expect it to come to fruition soon, which would be very beneficial for the sector.
Currently, there are about 10 active search funds in France looking to acquire a company, including Anchora Transmission, Davest Partners, Exicap, Mors Transmission, Relevia, Sailly Transmission, SLC Transmission, and Ulam Transmission. Another dozen are actively fundraising. There is no doubt that the model is beginning to take off seriously.
