Chartered accountant James MacLeay has joined from accountancy practice Kingston Smith, where he qualified before joining the firm’s corporate finance team.
During this time, he worked on many deals including the sale of Freightex to UPS; the readmission to AIM of Live Company Group plc; the investment in Axel Arigato by Vaultier7; and the acquisition of Good Eating Company by Sodexo.
At WestBridge he will work closely with the partners, assisting on deal origination, execution and portfolio management.
MacLeay said:
“This is a very exciting time to join WestBridge. As well as a growing reputation for successful investment, the firm operates in the lower mid-market space which is the area I particularly enjoy.
"The partners have delivered excellent returns from their first fund and I’m very much looking forward to supporting them and our expanding portfolio of management teams.”
Valerie Kendall, one of the four founding partners, said:
“James has worked extensively with entrepreneurial companies in our target market and understands all aspects of the deal process. We’re confident he’ll hit the ground running and expect him to make a strong contribution to our future success. We are delighted that he’s joined us.”
WestBridge has developed a strong reputation for providing high levels of strategic and operational support to portfolio companies.
Since 2012, the firm has led equity investments totalling circa £45 million in eight companies. It has also completed three exits, which have delivered an overall 4x multiple on invested capital.