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Beechbrook Capital partners with British Business Investments for new £20m SMA

Press release 08 May 2024

British Business Investments Ltd has increased its commitment to Beechbrook Capital LLP (“Beechbrook”) with a new £20 million separately managed account (“SMA”).

British Business Investments, a wholly owned commercial subsidiary of the British Business Bank, aims to improve access to alternative finance for smaller businesses across the UK, while supporting the transition to a net zero economy. Since it was established in 2014, British Business Investments has committed more than £3.8 billion to providers of finance to UK smaller businesses.

The SMA will co-invest alongside Beechbrook’s existing, and future, UK-focused funds. The funds support small and medium-sized businesses with turnover of between £10m and £100m, and an EBITDA of £1m and above. They provide predominantly senior secured loans to private, non-sponsored companies to support acquisitions, buy-outs, shareholder re-alignments, re-financings, and general expansion plans.

Beechbrook has built a longstanding partnership with British Business Investments; it is the sixth fund managed by Beechbrook that British Business Investments has invested in. The additional commitment comes as the two firms celebrate their 10th year of working together, with the team at British Business Investments having initially invested with Beechbrook in 2014.

Leveraging British Business Investments’ support, Beechbrook continues to provide essential financial capital to the underserved smaller business segment of the lower mid-market. Since 2008, Beechbrook has invested more than £0.5bn in 70 companies across the UK.

Beechbrook currently maintains a local presence in four major UK cities: London, Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds, and is considering other locations for expansion. These strategic locations allow Beechbrook to develop regional relationships, to gain an edge in origination and to understand better the needs of local businesses.

Beechbrook is currently investing the third fund in the strategy and has recently completed its ninth transaction in Give Me Cosmetics, based in Liverpool, and its tenth in Embrace Steel Group which has operations in North Yorkshire and South Wales. These transactions are a testament to Beechbrook’s expertise, regional focus and local presence.

We are delighted to advance our relationship with British Business Investments through the provision of this tailored managed account. We are committed to investing in the UK lower mid-market, supporting growth, jobs and the Levelling Up agenda. We have a busy pipeline and are looking forward to supporting more high quality management teams to achieve their strategic goals. Paul Shea Managing Partner, Beechbrook
We are excited to continue our support for Beechbrook with a new £20m SMA as they provide essential capital to the UK lower mid-market. This commitment to Beechbrook will further support UK smaller businesses with the finance they need to grow. British Business Investments has previously backed Beechbrook’s earlier SME Credit funds with commitments in 2017, 2019 and 2021, and we are pleased to continue our partnership. Adam Kelly Managing Director, British Business Investments

Further information

Notes to editors

About British Business Investments

British Business Investments Ltd is a wholly owned commercial subsidiary of British Business Bank plc, the UK government’s economic development bank. British Business Investments aims to earn a commercial return by investing – through finance providers – in smaller businesses and small mid-caps, pursuing investments on a fully commercial basis without receiving any economic advantage from the government. Find out more at bbinv.co.uk.

The Bank and its subsidiary entities are not banking institutions and do not operate as such. They are not authorised or regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) or the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). A complete legal structure chart for British Business Bank plc and its subsidiaries can be found on the British Business Bank plc website.

The transaction described above does not constitute or imply any endorsement, warranty or recommendation by the UK government, the British Business Bank plc or its subsidiaries or any other party in respect of Catfoss Finance Limited or its products or services.

About Beechbrook Capital LLP

Beechbrook Capital, a specialist direct lender founded in 2008, invests in the lower-mid market/SMEs across a range of industries in the UK and Europe through two separate debt strategies. To date, it has raised more than £1bn through eight funds and has invested in 99 companies in the UK and Europe.

Beechbrook’s UK SME Credit fund provides senior finance to support UK-based companies with a typical enterprise value of £10 million to £100 million, investing between £5m and £20m per transaction. Beechbrook has a separate, predominantly sponsored, SME fund in Europe.

The Beechbrook team consists of 15 plus investment professionals, located in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Frankfurt, and Cork.

Beechbrook was advised by Macfarlanes.

For additional information, please visit Beechbrook Capital’s website at https://www.beechbrookcapital.com/