Gleacher Acquired
Inevitable. Torch and Peel Hunt next!
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Yeah Peel Hunt has been a target for a while, they still have some decent broking clients, but ECM in the UK has been a dead goose since 2021/22 slowdown. After Robey got acquired, Gleacher for my liking were always a target with a similar partnership model and Shacklock looking to get an exit in some form. Will be interesting to see if they have any partnership clawbacks in the deal akin to what Robey had when Evercore acquired them. Torch, Alantra, PH and even GP Bullhound could be cheaper targets, you could imagine a HL/Blair or even RJ acquiring one of them. GS had £32m in rev last year, typically IBs sell at 2-3x that so wonder what the price paid would've been, would be very surprised if it was £100m+.
Part of me does wonder to what extent is it necessary to outright 'acquire' a boutique bank when you could just poach the best MDs and carve out certain teams, similar to what Guggenheim did with Greenhill's tech team in London.
Nice touch my friend. I guess the relationship and repeat deal flow is embedded in the platform for GS M&A. However, the Rx Biz was driven by DL who was poached outrightly by HL.
Yeah, the Greenhill team PJB and Co (Digital infra) held key relationships and deal flow, so it made sense to poach the team.
Yeah, UK ECM is weak, but corpoarte broking for P2P by transatlántic sponsors is @ all time high. Still think PH have the keys from a sell side perspective and like you said, I for see a volume sell-side shop acquiring them.
Bullhound is really cosplaying itself for FT Partners or Qatalyst and something will happen eventually.
Ditto - P2P is heating up, in my view its a hot sector that isn't really talked about. Foreign companies with capital looking to escape US dollar/geopolitical risk are coming to the UK, withstanding political key man risk and regulatory dissatisfaction. Thanks for the insight, very interesting
there was no Rx Biz after 2023 when they canned the other MD and let go the two associates. Dorian was kept on some shitty retainer as a senior advisor in the faint hopes that he can bring in a deal, which he of course didn't.
if gleacher didn't have a bumper year last year with JET (their main cash cow) acquired, this would not have happened. this came in at a perfect time for them I'm sure. TT electronics takeover failed as well, which they advised on.
The challenge with hiring laterally is the timing (ie, garden leave / non-compete / non-solicitation, reestablishing dialogues, getting mandated, executing the deal, regulatory approvals / closing). At best, the whole process can take a few years, and the whole thesis behind the hire might have changed by that point. Buying the platform is expensive, but you get a more immediate solution and something that's already got ongoing deal flow. For me, the platform deals make more sense, but I take your point on hiring rainmakers.
Good point - i think brand/platform value is only really best applicable to sector-niche boutiques where you can still retain some brand identity (i.e. Greenhill/August-Mizuho, KBW-Stifel, Valence-Piper and so forth). Ironically it seems that Robey has retained no brand identity and fully been integrated
Third tier gonna third tier
Who would acquire torch and peel hunt? Surely not a EB / BB as they mainly have LMM / MM client connections?
Deutshce acquired Numis and that's a fairly big growth priority for them atm, getting the broking / public markets mandates even if ECM is dead, P2P is lucrative. Potentially a DB Numis-PH tie up could create a mid-market public markets champion able to surpass Panmure Liberum
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