❤️ Thanks to everyone who brought our newsletter to the attention of new readers last week. The “share function” can be found at the end of the email. Today’s newsletter counts 835 words and takes about 4.0 minutes to read.

Today’s Rundown

• HoldCo Roko aims for IPO

• TEMBO’s vision for building the next generation of entrepreneurs

• BizCrunch launches Acquisition Incubator Program

• 4 deal announcements

• 9 career opportunities

Weekly Highlights

• Roko, a Sweden-based serial acqurirer platform, led by Tomas Billing and Fredrik Karlsson eyes $500m IPO, making it the Nordic region’s largest IPO in more than three years:

  • Roko is a Swedish holding company that aims to go public at a $3 billion valuation, just six years after its founding in 2019

  • Roko began with $17 million in founder capital and raised an additional ~$280 million from 130 high-net-worth Swedish investors in just three weeks

  • Its strategy centers on acquiring small, profitable, niche-market businesses with €2–10M EBITA and long-term stable margins

  • Roko positions itself as a “buy & hold forever investor” and maintains a decentralized structure, allowing portfolio companies to operate independently

  • Average acquisition multiple has been 7x EBITA and 1.3x sales, with Roko typically acquiring 75% of each business

  • Founders and management teams retain the remaining 25% through equity rollovers, with structured put/call options aligned to 3-year EBITA performance

  • Roko avoids markets like Germany and the US due to macroeconomic and logistical concerns, focusing instead on the UK and Nordics

  • In 2024, revenue was evenly split between the UK, Nordics, and other regions including the Netherlands, Australia, and the US

  • Roko has grown its portfolio to 33 businesses, producing over $600 million in pro forma revenue with a consistent 20% EBITA margin and 90%+ cash flow conversion

  • The internal team remains lean, with only eight people managing the group at the time of IPO

  • Despite being little known outside Northern Europe, Roko has delivered a 10x return for early investors and represents a rare success among serial acquirers

• Benedikt von Hatzfeldt and Christian Gieger, founders of TEMBO SEARCH PARTNERS, sharing their vision for building the next generation of entrepreneurs:

  • TEMBO aims to bridge the gap between SME owners seeking succession and capable entrepreneurs looking to acquire and operate businesses

  • Christian brings a decade of investment banking experience, especially in mid-cap M&A and financing, while Benedikt contributes expertise in executive search, leadership development, and entrepreneurship

  • TEMBO provides a structured ecosystem with capital, mentorship, and operational support for searchers from acquisition through post-acquisition management, offering also hands-on help with deal structuring, financing, due diligence, and risk management, especially for searchers without direct M&A experience

  • TEMBO uses a rigorous searcher selection process based on leadership potential, interpersonal skills, resilience, and entrepreneurial mindset

  • The firm maintains a long-term partnership with Münchmeyer Petersen & Co. (MPC), whose reputation and experience enhance credibility with SME owners and lenders

  • The German Mittelstand includes 99% of German companies and contributes 52% of GDP, but many face succession issues due to aging owners

  • Search fund adoption in Germany has been slow due to limited awareness, conservative financing practices, and owner reluctance - but conditions are improving

  • TEMBO fully finances the search phase internally, allowing investors to focus on direct deals and enabling smoother and more scalable fundraising; this approach increases investor transparency and accelerates deal flow, making the model more appealing in the German market

  • TEMBO plans to support five searchers annually and has already onboarded Hermann Finkeldei and Jasper von Flotow as its first two

• Gareth Hawkins, together with bizcrunch, launched an Acquisition Incubator Program:

  •  8-week hybrid, cohort-based program to learn the necessary skills and tools to find, fund and finalize an M&A deal

  • Limited 6 places on their first cohort, which starts in May (apply here)

  • Moreover, on June 18th, their Serial Acquirer Symposium will take place in London (link)

Deal Announcements

• 🇩🇪 KKA Partners, an opportunistic small cap private equity firm, acquired GeHo Group, a distributor of confectionery, snacks and drinks (link)

• 🇩🇪 Keensight Capital, a mid cap private equity firm, acquired ACTICO Group, a provider of digital solutions (link)

• 🇫🇷 Steliau Technology, a Astrog asset and Value-Added Distributor (VAD) of electronic solutions, combining design, integration and distribution capabilities, acquired ACTRON AG, specialized in know-how in the areas of displays, HMI and touch panel technologies (link)

• 🇩🇪 UnternehmensGut, a small cap private equity firm, acquired Image Access, a manufacturer of specialized scanning and digitization solutions (link)

Career Opportunities

• [PE-Asset] CFO | Camino Search | Barcelona (apply)*

• [PE-Asset] Interim CFO | Camino Search | Munich (apply)*

• [PE-Asset] Head of M&A | Camino Search | Eindhoven (apply)*

• [PE-Asset] Investment / Portfolio Manager | Camino Search | Munich (apply)*

• [PE-Asset] M&A Manager | Finatal | Remote (apply)*

• [PE-Asset] M&A Intern | Hyand | Munich (apply)

• [PE] CFO /Operating Partner | Camino Search | London (apply)*

• [PE] Investment Associate | Rubicon Partners | London (apply)

• [PE] Investment Intern | Armira Growth | Munich (apply)

_*Headhunter

Any suggestions, questions, or criticism? Any topics that should be covered in the future? By answering this email, you’re sliding right into my inbox.