Xeinadin Group completes private equity partnership agreement

The professional services group behind Stockport’s Hallidays and 36 other firms in the North-west, Xeinadin Group, has completed the agreement of a new strategic partnership with private equity investors, Exponent.

Exponent, which has a track record in the professional services sector, has now made a significant minority investment in Xeinadin to support the business’s ambitious growth plans. Completion of the deal follows regulatory approval for the investment after it was first announced in February 2022.

Xeinadin is a group of business advisory and accountancy practices with over 100 locations across the UK and Ireland that provides over 40 service lines to over 50,000 clients, predominantly small and medium sized businesses and their owner-managers. It was formed through a merger of the offices in 2019 and is now structured into 14 regional hubs. Stockport-based Hallidays is among the founding practices within the group.

The investment by Exponent will support the Company’s ambitions to grow significantly, both organically and through acquisitions and allow the professional services group to make further investments in innovative data-driven technologies to help drive efficiencies and improve the quality, breadth and delivery of services to Xeinadin clients.

The Group is looking to take advantage of the strong growth in SME professional services spend, valued at £9 billion annually, that is driven by more complex regulations, such as Making Tax Digital and sustainability and equality-related reporting requirements for firms. Growth in outsourcing, being driven by new cloud-based technologies in accounting, is also behind the market growth.

Mark Taylor and Tom Lightowler of Exponent will join Xeinadin’s Board, along with John Dwyer, an Exponent Operating Partner, joining as a non-executive director. Alastair Marsh will remain as Chairman.

Derry Crowley, CEO, Xeinadin Group, said: 

“The completion of this partnership agreement means we can start the exciting next stage of our growth. We have ambitious plans and have found the right investor to support us and drive forward our ambitions. We have a clear vision of where we want to go in the next phase of our development and we’re confident that Exponent is going to be invaluable in helping us achieve that.”

Mark Taylor, Partner at Exponent, commented: 

“Xeinadin is one of the leading consolidators in the UK and Ireland professional services landscape and has a huge opportunity in a highly fragmented market. We’ve been impressed by the work done to date by Derry and the team to build a profitable business with highly diversified sources of income, more than 95 per cent of which is recurring. We look forward to working with Xeinadin over the coming years.”