HURST Corporate Finance has strengthened its senior deal-making team with the appointment of James Fieldhouse as Partner.
James joins from BDO, where he spent more than 20 years advising entrepreneurs, corporates and private equity investors on mergers and acquisitions, disposals, management buyouts, fundraisings and investments.
His appointment adds further senior M&A experience to the HURST Corporate Finance team at a time of continued growth, with a strong pipeline of live and prospective transactions and continued appetite from both trade and private equity buyers.
James has advised on transactions across a broad range of sectors, with particular experience in business services, software and technology, media and events, manufacturing, consumer, pharmaceuticals and healthcare.
He joined BDO in 2003 and spent the majority of his career within its deal advisory team, progressing through the firm to become a Partner in its Manchester M&A practice.
His appointment further strengthens HURST Corporate Finance’s ability to support shareholders, management teams, corporates and investors through complex mid-market transactions.
James said: “I’m delighted to be joining HURST Corporate Finance as a Partner at such an exciting point in the firm’s development.
“The opportunity to join the firm as it enters its next phase as part of the Dains Group was particularly compelling, combining the strength and heritage of HURST with significant opportunities for further growth.
“I’m looking forward to bringing my M&A experience to the team, with a particular focus on supporting clients across the business services and TMT sectors, while continuing to work across the broader market.”
Strengthening senior deal-making capability
Ben Bradley, Head of HURST Corporate Finance, said James’s appointment reflects the continued development of the team and the strength of its current pipeline.
“James is a highly regarded M&A adviser and we are delighted to welcome him to the team. His extensive experience advising business owners, corporates and investors, combined with his strong network of relationships, gives us additional senior capacity and further strengthens our ability to support clients throughout the transaction process.”
“James is exactly the calibre of senior talent we want to attract as we enter our next phase of growth. His experience, relationships and track record further strengthen the advice we can provide to clients across the transaction lifecycle.”
Ben Bradley, Head of HURST Corporate Finance
Continued activity across our core markets
The appointment comes against a backdrop of continued transaction activity across a number of HURST Corporate Finance’s core sectors.
The team continues to see strong interest in high-quality businesses from both strategic and private equity investors, particularly where there are resilient earnings, recurring or predictable revenues and clear opportunities for further growth.
One area where HURST Corporate Finance expects continued activity is technical services and maintenance, including HVAC, M&E, fire safety, compliance, testing and inspection, together with businesses serving the wider built environment and social housing sectors.
These markets continue to benefit from resilient underlying demand, increasing regulatory requirements and a significant population of established owner-managed businesses across the North West.
Business services and TMT also remain important areas of focus for the team, with continued investor appetite for businesses with differentiated propositions, strong management teams and scalable growth opportunities.
Ben added: “We have a strong pipeline of live and prospective transactions and continue to see solid demand from both trade buyers and private equity for high-quality businesses.
“James brings significant experience across a number of the markets where we are already seeing considerable opportunity and will play an important role as we continue to grow the team and our transaction activity.”
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