Moonbase Capital invests in SMEs through Search Funds – an exciting new asset class that rests on the stability and low risk of Private Equity whilst taking inspiration from the agility, diversity and dynamism of Venture Capital to bring their investors larger returns, with lower risk.
The Moonbase Capital partners has been working hard over the past few months and they are proud to launch their new website and brand.
Their goal is to differentiate themselves from other financial institutions by forming close partnerships with investors and entrepreneurs, and offering unparalleled support through their advisory board and partners.
INTRODUCING THE MOONBASE CAPITAL PARTNERS
The Moonbase Capital partners have accumulated over 50 years of hands-on experience acquiring, leading and growing SMEs. Today, we are going to be interviewing two of the three Moonbase Capital partners, Ibrahim and Carlos.
Hi Carlos! So what inspired you to start Moonbase Capital?
Well, we’re entrepreneurs and we are constantly looking for new opportunities to develop our knowledge and expertise. We’ve had our fair share of SME experience, having worked for big consultancy firms and successfully sold SMEs, and we were looking for a new challenge.
I was introduced to Search Funds when a couple of searchers approached me and Ibrahim to pitch for funds. Ibrahim already knew about Search Funds, as he was taught the model by his lecturer, Peter Kelly while studying for his Masters degree at Stanford.
We both found the concept very interesting! We knew our experience and knowledge could add a lot of value and we wanted to help entrepreneurs find and grow SMEs. However, we didn’t want to add value to just one company – we wanted to do something on a bigger scale.
That’s when we decided to raise some funds to launch Moonbase Capital, with the goal of investing in 40 or 50 SMEs in Europe.
Naturally, we have financial goals for the business, but our main goal is to lead and shape this new asset class in Europe that has been so successful in the US. We want everyone in our industry to know how special Search Funds are!
As you can probably tell, we’re very passionate about Search Funds. This is probably a path we would all have chosen if we’d known that Search Funds existed at the start of our careers. So, it’s really about helping entrepreneurs do what we would have loved to have done after our MBAs.
So why is Moonbase Capital the best choice for searchers, Ibrahim?
Firstly, SMEs run in a very different way than corporate businesses and our expertise and passion lies with SMEs. So, we understand the challenges that founders of SMEs face.
This means we’re in the best position to support entrepreneurs and help them take SMEs to the next level of growth. At the same time, we appreciate the value of entrepreneurship and we give entrepreneurs the freedom to run their businesses in the way they want.
Secondly, we know first-hand how difficult it can be to grow a company and want to share our SME expertise with other entrepreneurs.
We have also created an advisory board that offers valuable one-on-one support. I think our community of experts is a huge benefit to entrepreneurs.
In my experience, a support network offers tremendous value and is essential for many entrepreneurs during the search and running of a company. This expertise and dedicated support set us apart from other financial institutions.
What would you say makes Search Funds so special, Carlos?
As we discussed earlier, it’s very difficult to grow a corporation to say €500 million, and even at that size, these large companies are also difficult to manage.
In our opinion, it’s much easier to scale an SME with EBITDA between €1-5 million. SMEs make up a huge proportion of the economy but not many people are investing in them. This presents a huge opportunity for entrepreneurs and investors.
Search Funds are unique because they allow entrepreneurs to take control of a manageable company and drive it to the next level of growth with the support of SME experts.
Basically, we believe that entrepreneurs are more likely to succeed when they take control of a small but established company where they can inject their passion and ideas.
Ibrahim, is there something about Moonbase Capital you’re most proud of?
I’m very proud of our company values – integrity, passion, humility and commitment – we live and breathe them. We’re passionate about what we do and our culture is very different from other financial institutions – we are not your typical finance guys!
Another great point is that we’re all entrepreneurs with diverse SME experience – from business consultancy to search, acquisition and leadership. We have practised what we preach and we’re proud and excited to have the opportunity to empower other entrepreneurs
Great! So to finish, where do you see Moonbase Capital in 5 years, Carlos?
From the stats, we can see that Search Funds are becoming more and more popular in the USA but also in Europe, and we anticipate that the Search Fund space will continue to grow over the coming years.
We’re currently raising €30 million that will allow us to invest in 40 or 50 SMEs, but we hope to continue raising funds so we can invest in new searchers periodically.
Over the next 5 years, our goal is to gain enough traction in the market to raise sufficient funds to have annual cohorts of searchers. Our focus at the moment is in Europe, but our long-term goal is to have a global presence in the Search Fund environment.
We want Moonbase Capital to flourish in the European market and then internationally, changing investing for the better worldwide!
GET IN TOUCH WITH MOONBASE CAPITAL TO LEARN MORE ABOUT SEARCH FUNDS
If you would like to learn more about Search Funds and how to get started, get in touch with Moonbase Capital today. Our team can support you at every step of your Search Fund journey, whether as a searcher or investor, and we are always happy to answer any questions.