IK Partners takes majority stake in Dains Accountants

Executing the definitive exit of its controlling position, the private equity firm Horizon Capital has agreed to sell a majority stake in Dains Accountants to the incoming institutional sponsor IK Partners. Finalized in December 2024, this secondary buyout transaction establishes a substantial valuation framework for the British accountancy platform, commanding an implied £100–350M. The transaction is formally executed through a dedicated acquisition vehicle named Pebble Topco Limited, utilizing capital deployed directly from the IK X Fund. Following a highly successful three-year holding cycle that commenced in 2021, the exiting financial sponsor successfully scaled the targeted enterprise through an aggressive expansion thesis, completing exactly ten distinct strategic add-on acquisitions while maintaining robust organic momentum. At the time of this ownership transition, the target's financial profile demonstrated a pro forma adjusted EBITDA exceeding £10–30M for the financial year ending March 2025, ultimately reflecting a forward transaction multiple of approximately 10x–18x. Under the rigorously negotiated capital restructuring, the targeted company's management team, actively spearheaded by the Chief Executive Officer, will significantly reinvest their personal proceeds into the newly formed equity structure, guaranteeing total operational continuity and structural alignment with the new majority shareholder. This fresh institutional backing aims to rapidly accelerate the target's inorganic consolidation trajectory, explicitly targeting complementary professional service firms across the British and Irish markets. The strategic rationale behind this leveraged buyout hinges on establishing the undisputed acquirer of choice within a highly fragmented regulatory marketplace. By absorbing this established service infrastructure, the incoming financial sponsor secures an immediately profitable, highly cash-generative asset equipped with a proven integration engine. The newly capitalized board intends to deploy substantial follow-on financing to continuously upgrade the underlying technological platform, expand the geographic footprint, and execute further bolt-on integrations that systematically raise the barrier to entry within the small and medium-sized enterprise advisory segment.