Background

Cornwall Insight operates from premises in the UK, Ireland and Australia, and is a leading provider of specialist consultancy, intelligence and training services. These relate mainly to the regulatory, policy and commercial aspects of the energy and water markets. The company has a long-standing reputation with a wide-ranging customer base, including the ‘Big Six’ UK energy firms as well as global gas and electricity producers, regulators and governments.

Cornwall Insight had grown rapidly and required investment to support its future business plan. The company had several founder shareholders who were looking for a full or partial exit; at the same time the shareholders wanted to incentivise a young, ambitious management team.

Action

Our team was initially engaged to advise the company on market valuation, and review the strategic options for the board, including advice on timing to maximise those options. Our Corporate Finance team worked with the shareholders to develop a business plan, and with management over 18 months to prepare the business for a transaction.

The team then acted as lead adviser to both the company and shareholders, running a highly competitive process to source a number of equity investors and debt providers from the UK and overseas, and then negotiate and manage the investment through every stage to completion.

Outcome

The team secured a minority investment from the Business Growth Fund, the UK and Ireland’s most active investor in small and medium-sized growing companies, alongside debt funding from Barclays. This funding enabled the partial exit and cash out for the founding and legacy shareholders, with significant equity set aside for the senior management team on delivery of the business plan. The deal also provided substantial investment to support the business plan, including the opening of new offices and international expansion.