For a full report on the winners visit
businessawards.co.uk
Corporate Finance Team of the Year Award
Compiling the right team of advisers and funders to secure a well-structured deal can be a tricky task, demanding top corporate finance professionals
Winner: Meridian Corporate Finance
Meridian completed 14 deals, a £165 million total value ranging from companies sold to UK and overseas buyers, MBOs, and growth fund-raising. Key deals included ChinaTool, Stewart Signs, AndersElite and Keysource. Meridian completes over 90% of deals undertaken, compared with a 30% industry average.
“It’s our 15th anniversary; this means a lot to us,” remarked partner Darren Thompson. “We are embedded at the Solent
Law Firm of the Year Award
Complex deals can involve many legal aspects, and accordingly highly-experienced and talented teams of lawyers are required
Winner: Blake Morgan
In a full-on year for Blake Morgan’s south coast team led by partner James Hawkeswood, deals included the ChamSys sale to Chauvet Lighting; Deverill sale to 365itms; Utility Funding sale to Foresight Metering; the management buyout of Stewart Signs; and the ChinaTool MBO.
business community heart, committed to the region, and we want to continue what we are doing well. We invest in as many companies as we advise on the CF side, so we are also big ‘rainmakers’ in the region, helping to keep deals flowing through.”
Other finalists . . . • BDO • Spectrum Corporate Finance
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Hawkeswood proudly said: “I don’t really think we’ve done anything differently this year in terms of the quality of our work or the people we have. We have just been incredibly
lucky to work with really good clients that have allowed our great team to bring its talents to bear on some really cool deals. It’s down to circumstance, in getting the right relationships that trigger the right results.”
Other finalists • Shoosmiths • Trethowans
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Corporate Finance Adviser of the Year Award
This prized title was again contested by some of the most experienced, best known, and professionally respected CF individuals on the south coast
Winner: Helen O’Kane (BDO)
Last year, Helen, a specialist M&A adviser, was promoted to CF managing director and won a BDO award for work on the Hendy acquisition. She also worked on Sandy Balls Holiday Park, Outcomes First and CT Automotive transactions.
First time title-winner O’Kane
Other finalists . . . • Michael Barcia (Meridian Corporate Finance)
• Stewart Lambert (James Cowper Kreston)
• Darren Miller (Spectrum Corporate Finance)
• Darren Thompson (Meridian Corporate Finance)
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said: “It’s a great accolade. I’m proud and thrilled to receive approval from the CF community. But, it reflects a combination of our BDO team’s ongoing professional growth and wonderful clients we have worked with this past year. I am merely the visible beneficiary of that.”
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Bank of the Year Award
The contenders were all well-known high-street names – each equally renowned in south coast CF circles for their ongoing support of growing businesses and major transactions
Winner: HSBC
HSBC continues as the most active CF transactional bank, and its Solent operation had a highly successful year. Deals included the funding of Hendy Automotive’s acquisition of Lifestyle Europe; a University of Southampton bond issue; CT Automotive’s debt-funded MBO; Park Holidays MBO; Wiggle’s acquisition of CRC.
While mentioning recent UK tragedies, Anthony Reed, HSBC head of corporate banking for Hampshire & Dorset,
commented: “We all generally forget the difference we can make in assisting businesses and creating jobs. We (HSBC) don’t take that for granted. Everyone on this stage tonight, everyone in this room, does an amazing job, and it’s a privilege to work with them.”
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Other finalists • Lloyds Banking Group • RBS NatWest
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH COAST – JULY/AUGUST 2017
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