Search Funds

Search Funds are alternative investment vehicles established to raise a pool of capital to help an aspiring entrepreneur locate, acquire and operate a single privately-held small to mid-size company. This investment model originated in 1984 at Harvard Business School and was then popularized at Stanford Graduate School of Business over the following 10 years. As it has expanded throughout the years, talented MBA graduates from top-tier programs have achieved their dream of owning, operating and growing a company.

While becoming increasingly popular, search funds are still a relatively unknown asset class among most investors in private equity. As outlined above under our investment criteria, search funds target companies that are substantially smaller than the ones a typical private equity firm would. In addition, the goal is to own and operate the business post-acquisition, preserving it’s legacy and building on an already solid foundation. They are differentiated from venture capital in that the companies purchased are already profitable and have been in business for many years, often decades. With so much opportunity, search funds are arguably one of the most exciting asset classes in private equity today.