Independent Sponsor · London
Transformational mid-market buy-and-build
Founded in 2025, Catalina leads control investments in founder-owned, profitable mid-market companies and builds them into category leaders through buy-and-build, technology-led transformation and deliberate integration
We lead
Control or co-control positions where we drive strategy, capital allocation and exit
We build, not arbitrage
Returns come from assembled earnings and deliberate integration. Any re-rating is earned, not a bet on market-driven multiple arbitrage
We invest in sectors we know well
Business services, industrial & infrastructure services, healthcare services and niche manufacturing. Sectors and sub-sectors with attractive buy-and-build features
We share our vision with founders
A true partnership with founders and management, built on a clearly articulated growth strategy from the first conversation
Why founder-led mid-market
A structural supply of opportunities
A generational ownership transfer is under way across European SMEs. Supply is growing faster than the pool of credible buyers
Mid-market funds have drifted up-market. The lower-mid-market control segment is less competitive, relationship-driven and rewards sector knowledge over auction firepower
Our investment themes are fragmented and sub-scale, giving us room to assemble a category leader beneath the consolidators, who buy at a size we do not compete for
Sources: European Commission business-transfer data; Argos Index / Epsilon Research, Q1 2026.
How we create value
Integration, not arbitrage
Buy well
Proprietary founder entry at 5.0–7.0x, below the consolidators above us
Build the platform
Operational design and C-suite build out at the top of our agenda
Integrate deliberately
Add-ons integrated around a common operating model and technology backbone
Grow & deleverage
Released capacity sold as revenue; debt paid down through the hold
Exit a leader
Selling to a buyer — PE-backed consolidator or corporate — identified before the platform was bought
At a glance
Companies
Founder-owned, profitable businesses
Geography
Europe / US
Equity ticket
€15–30m
Target size
€2–15m EBITDA, €10–150m EV