Convex Joint Venture

Knights Group Holdings PLC

04 April 2024

 

Knights Group Holdings plc

("Knights" or the "Group")

Convex Joint Venture

Knights, the fast-growing regional professional services business in the UK, today announces its joint venture with the former Convex Capital management team to form Convex Corporate Finance Limited ("Convex").

Background

Convex, one of the leading sell-side only M&A advisory firms in the UK, was acquired from RBG Holdings on 28 March 2024 by its management team through a joint venture with Knights.

The primary focus of Convex is to support vendors of entrepreneur-led businesses in maximising their equity value through sales to global strategic acquirers. Knights' participation in the joint venture is in line with its strategy to diversify the range of professional services available to clients by expanding its M&A legal services into corporate finance.

Founded in 2010, Convex has advised on deals valued at over £3bn in aggregate and is focussed on creating successful sale outcomes for its owner-managed clients, including the recent sales of Gorilla Accounting to Azets (UK), Thoroughbred Remedies Manufacturing to Equine Care Group (Belgium) and Metallisation to Kymera (USA).

Knights has provided £2.55m of debt and equity financing to Convex funded from its existing cash resources.

Rationale

As market confidence returns, the substantial professional synergies driving this joint venture will provide Convex clients with access to Knights' legal M&A and private wealth services at the inception of a potential disposal ensuring high-quality legal and tax advice is available to them from the outset of their exit strategy. 

The Convex team of eleven professionals, based in the Knights office at 2 St Peter's Square, Manchester, will work closely with its 90-strong corporate, and 110-strong private client, teams to provide clients with a full suite of premium, seamless services to vendors.  The broad national presence of Knights in already established markets for Convex further enhances growth potential.

David Beech, CEO of Knights, commented:

"Convex has built a reputation as one of the leading sell-side only M&A practices in the UK and the cultural fit with its dynamic and hungry management team is strong, creating a mutually beneficial symbiotic relationship for Knights and Convex.

This JV will allow us to continue diversifying our offering to clients, who require a broader range of services beyond legal while supporting our future organic growth."

James Edge, Managing Partner of Convex, commented:

"We have an exceptionally talented team and strong growth ambitions which we had not been able to fulfil under previous ownership. By management taking control of the business, we are delighted Convex is back in the hands of entrepreneurs with a passion to continue to provide UK entrepreneurs best in class exit advice."

Enquiries 

Knights
David Beech, CEO	Via MHP
Numis (Nomad and Broker)
Stuart Skinner, Kevin Cruickshank	020 7260 1000
MHP (Media enquiries)
Katie Hunt, Eleni Menikou, Rob Collett-Creedy	020 3128 8100 [phone] [e-mail]

Notes to Editors

Knights is a legal and professional services business, ranked within the UK's top 50 largest law firms by revenue. Knights was one of the first law firms in the UK to move from the traditional partnership model to a corporate structure in 2012 and has since grown rapidly. Knights has specialists in all key areas of corporate and commercial law so that it can offer end-to-end support to businesses of all sizes and in all sectors. It is focussed on key UK markets outside London and currently operates from 23 offices located in Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Carlisle, Cheltenham, Chester, Exeter, Kings Hill, Leeds, Leicester, Lincoln, Manchester, Newbury, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Nottingham, Oxford, Portsmouth, Sheffield, Stoke, Teesside, Weybridge, Wilmslow and York.

 

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