Founder Letter
Expert, Research-Driven, Unconflicted Advisory focused on Mid-Market
Dear Clients and Partners,
When I founded Blu Capital Partners (BCP) in the spring of 2019, the capital markets were booming. It was one of the best times for an entrepreneur to sell their business or raise capital. And while I was grateful for, and valued enormously, my prior career at AlpInvest Partners (The Carlyle Group) and Rothschild, I believed there was a profound need for superior investment banking advisory services in the mid-market for Shareholders, Boards, CEOs and Investors in Eastern Europe.
The positive markets changed quickly after 2019. In Q1 2020 the pandemic hit in Europe, and as a result M&A markets stalled, while capital markets were very cautious. After which, in Q1 2022 the Ukraine conflict started and equity valuation dropped significantly, while debt pricing increased, becoming a headwind for M&A.
As a new advisory firm in a market with high barriers to entry from the perspective of building trust with clients and investors, we had to be agile and adapt to these rapid changes, while continuing to supporting our clients thrive despite the extrinsic factors. We continued to believe in the fundamentals and resilience of the mid-market segment, and navigated effectively to close M&A and financing transactions relentlessly despite M&A and capital markets volatility.
The last years of driving value for clients within BCP in these conditions have given us a unique perspective in understanding the opportunities and challenges of mid-market firms. And this allows us not only to engage closely with our clients as we can relate to their development plans, but also to navigate effectively and think long-term, irrespective of market swings.
In my prior positions, I saw clients and investors looking for several qualities within a partner or advisor – being solution-driven, trustworthy and committed. While it’s hard to differentiate a service firm, and scale it, based on these foundations, my vision was to build an advisory firm which has five clear differentiating factors:
- A clear focus on the mid-market segment, which has specific challenges and opportunities; we have seen how this plays into our day-to-day, by our investment banking professionals making relevant connections and generating relevant insights for clients, which is making our clients stay with us;
- A research-driven approach that leverages insights and compelling analysis to inform strategy and take educated decisions with conviction; we don’t play by the ear, we advice only based on research and data, coupled with our long-standing expertise and cross-product knowledge;
- A clear alignment of interests between the advisory firm and the client through both client engagements (the quantum of our fees depends on the value we bring, which we jointly define with our clients), and our engagements with our investment banking professionals (which are directly incentivized with BCP’s success, hence with our client success).
- Flexibility across the capital structure, offering a one-stop solution for Mid-Market Shareholders & CEOs; while many firms have several departments offering M&A Advisory, Equity Advisory, Debt Advisory, Valuation, or other all our investment banking professionals advice our clients across all products, and across the capital structure; this is unique in that our clients have one single point of contact within BCP for all advisory needs;
- An extensive network of investor relationships, which our centralized team manages directly; the investment banker responsible on deal execution is also responsible on investor relationships for that client, resulting in a very agile and effective collaboration.
Moreover, we are building BCP fully with a digitalized mindset. From initial client contact, until transaction closing, 99% of the process is paperless and fully digitalized. Our digital and nimble operation should allow us to continue to offer superior service to our clients, scale and maintain our competitive advantages while we onboard new clients, new partners, new investors, and new colleagues.
While it was not obvious that we can enter such a highly competitive market (investment banking advisory), fast forward today, BCP has advised clients over 50 clients for transaction from €10 to 200 million. We have done business in most European countries, as we have the confidence and trust of our clients and investor network to do business almost anywhere in the world. Through the hard work of our teams, we are now one of European’s leading independent investment banking advisory firms focused on the mid-market Technology sector.
As we move forward, BCP remains steadfast in our dedication to providing innovative and trusted advisory services to our clients in the mid-market segment, with a big firm expertise and service level, with boutique firm touch. We strive to be your trusted partner, offering strategic insights and personalized solutions to help you navigate the dynamic landscape of the mid-market segment.
Our clients told us that they hire us because “we understand what it take, we roll up our sleeves. and deliver”. That speaks about who BCP is and how we are treating every client relationship.
Thank you for considering BCP as your investment banking advisor in your journey. We look forward to building a successful partnership and achieving remarkable outcomes together.
Sincerely,
Tudor Mafteianu
Founder & CEO
Blu Capital Partners.