After announcing plans to establish a second UK office in early 2023, Marktlink has opened its new center in Birmingham. The mergers and acquisitions consultancy is also based in the UK in Manchester.

First established in the Netherlands in 1996, Marktlink is a professional M&A consulting firm, working with small and medium-sized clients around the world. The company now has an international team of more than 180 M&A experts and facilitates companies with transactions worth between €5 million and €250 million.

While the post-pandemic period initially saw a boom in the global M&A market, 2022 and 2023 saw a sharp decline in activity. Despite this, Marktlink remains determined to push ahead with its expansion plans, which will see it open a center in the UK for the first time in 2022 – citing market analysis that shows UK entrepreneurs are “optimistic about the future future” as a basis for investing more in the national market.

Jonny Parkinson, partner in the UK’s first office in Manchester since 2022, noted, “The UK has emerged from a deeper depression than other European countries, with challenges such as market debt, interest rate ceilings and the impact of Brexit. However, UK SME entrepreneurs remain hopeful in 2024. Our market analysis shows that 57% of entrepreneurs expect that the domestic M&A market will improve over the next year compared to the European average. Europe is 48%. Furthermore, with this move we open the doors for UK SMEs to access our existing and extensive European network.”

According to Parkinson, these changes could have a positive impact on the growth and ambitions of British entrepreneurs, which could lead them to turn to M&A to accelerate their expansion plans. Marktlink’s move to the West Midlands – a key technology hub in the UK economy – therefore positions the company well to help entrepreneurs realize their acquisition and growth plans.

Speaking on the company’s UK prospects, Luc Keltjens, partner at Marktlink Amsterdam, said: “We have enjoyed great success since opening our first UK office last year and Demand from European companies looking to acquire UK businesses continues to increase. Business owners in the Midlands and wider UK will be able to use our international network of 50 deal teams across six countries to benefit from growing demand for cross-border opportunities. border.”

Joe Moran has been appointed partner and head of the Midlands office. Previously a consultant for Deloitte, he has 17 years of experience in corporate finance and will advise entrepreneurs on their acquisition and divestment strategies. He also spent time working in industry, with automakers including Jaguar Land Rover and Rolls-Royce.

Moran explains: “The UK is a large and well-established M&A market, and I am delighted to be leading the next phase of Marktlink’s successful international expansion and supporting entrepreneurs across the business sector. This is very important to realize their M&A ambitions.” “The acquisition or sale of a business is one of the most important events in an entrepreneur’s life. The opening of this new office will allow business owners in the Midlands to access our M&A expertise and extensive network of European investment opportunities to help them secure the best future for their operations your business.”