Alex is a senior manager at Castle Corporate Finance.
He joined from Crowe in January 2021 as an experienced corporate financier, where he principally focussed on capital market and financial due diligence assignments. He also spent a period working for a Kent-based private equity backed healthcare business.
Alex was promoted to senior manager in January 2024.
Alex advises clients on a wide range of services including exits, acquisitions, fundraising and Employee Ownership Trusts.
What drew you to towards a career in corporate finance?
“After completing my ACA I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do next. I was tempted to move into practice fairly quickly, however I was offered a secondment to the Kent corporate finance team at Crowe to help during a particularly busy period. I soon realised that project, transaction-based work suited my personality more than fairly repetitive processes, and after a short period of time I was convinced that this was the avenue I wanted my career to follow. Soon I found that I was working with businesses that varied massively in size, stage of growth and ultimately what their requirements were, and this kept me stimulated.”
What is your role at Castle now?
“Given we’re a fairly small tight-knit team, I still like to roll up my sleeves and get into the detail! Primarily, my role is to be the point of contact for clients and project manage a portfolio of transactions along the various stages of a transaction to a smooth completion. In addition, I am responsible for leading and managing my own business development initiatives to bring new leads and contacts to the business.”
What deal has stood out for you during your time at Castle?
“I have been lucky in that I’ve worked on quite a range of deals since joining in 2021. For the sheer complexity and prestige of it being a 7th generation business, the sale of Lodge Brothers to an EOT stands out. There was the emotional complexities of making the decision to transition to employee ownership, alongside the technical complexities of the group being FCA and SRA registered. I do enjoy fundraising mandates, so the added aspect of raising a slice of debt as part of the deal was the cherry on top.”
What are your aspirations for the future?
“Throughout my career in corporate finance there has been a number of macro-economic factors which have made the market fairly unpredictable. I think everyone is keen to move to calmer waters after Brexit, COVID and various global conflicts, so I really hope to be able to help Castle prosper in the future under what could be considered “normal” market conditions.”
Some recent deals:
- The acquisition of Lexxic Limited, a provider of neurodiversity services, by Agathos Management LLP.
- The acquisition of Tribeca Technology Holdings by US-based Abacus Group LLC.
- The transition of 7th generation owned Lodge Brothers, a leading provider of funeral services, to employee ownership.
- The MBO of Finlayson Media Communications, backed by Coniston Capital LLP.
- The re-financing of Pennard Vets’ debt facilities, back by Shawbrook Bank.
