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CORPORATE FINANCE ADVISER OF THE YEAR AWARD
SPONSORED BY MOORE BLATCH WINNER Michael Barcia of Meridian Corporate Finance
Michael Barcia (above and left centre) of Meridian Corporate Finance accepts his award from sponsor Moore Blatch’s Peter Jeffery
Following an excellent main course, it was back to the awards, and the performance of individuals again.
There were four leading contenders shortlisted for the title of Corporate Finance Adviser of the Year:
Michael Barcia of Meridian Corporate Finance acted as lead adviser on four transactions in the relevant awards assessment period. The team at Meridian had another standout year, with deals including the MBO of Lyndhurst-based Zenergi, and expansion of the Koh Thai restaurant chain.
David Copley is a partner in the south coast team of Baker Tilly. His recent deals have covered a wide spectrum of sectors from recruitment to software. Copley led the Baker Tilly team on the buyout of Southampton-based sailcloth specialist Bainbridge International.
Stewart Lambert of James Cowper advised on deals with a value of more than £100m in 2013 including the Andante Travels deal, one of the few pure MBIs completed in the south in recent years. He also advised The Appointment Group on the complex acquisition of ET Travel and fundraising for Roughton Group. Additionally, Lambert worked on a large PE deal and a major development capital deal off-patch.
Among a number of successful transactions last year Amanda Phillips of Smith & Williamson led the sale of The Bluebird Care Group to Interim HealthCare Group of the US, proving her firm’s expertise both in healthcare and the franchising model. The deal saw a US private equity firm investing in the UK market, in this niche area for the first time. Phillips recent assignments include deals in healthcare, food, leisure, technology and business services.
Peter Jeffery, partner, of Moore Blatch, announced the winner – Michael Barcia.
The Meridian Corporate Finance table erupted in celebration as its partner Barcia rose to walk to the stage. After the formalities, Barcia reflected on his journey in gaining the title as Corporate Financial Adviser of the Year.
“I think I’ve been nominated about eight times in the 15-16 years that I’ve been working down here, so it is very important to me to have won this year.“
Barcia has worked in CF for 18 years, and believes longevity had a bearing on his award. “We have consistently completed a lot of deals over the years and proven that we are here to stay.“
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – JULY/AUGUST 2014
It was also recognition of the firm’s hard work in supporting him, and the development over the years of the firm’s scale and scope, he added.
“Our first nominations came when there were just three of us in the firm, and since then we have steadily built the team up so we can do more deals.
In fact, we
complete 90% of the deals we take on. I don’t think anyone else can boast of doing that.“
Earlier in his career, before helping to establish Meridian Corporate Finance in 2005 (MBO in 2008), Barcia, became aware of issues that might cause deal failure and set out to resolve these. Meridian’s strong deals success rate is evidence of Barcia’s involvement in creating a process that now helps to de- risk the firm’s dealmaking.
“We address the issues at the early stage of a transaction, actively looking at things that might be dealt with at end diligence.“ To enable that preparation, Meridian’s team has a wide-range of professional skills and experience.
www.businessmag.co.uk
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