AML firm used by 1,000 agencies bought by private equity firm

Compliance and anti-money laundering specialist SmartSearch has sold a majority stake in the business to Triple Private Equity as it looks to bolster its position in the regtech sector.

SmartSearch was founded in 2011 by Martin Cheek (main picture) and John Dobson and has grown rapidly from start-up to scale-up and is widely regarded as a leader in digital compliance.

REGULATORY DEMANDS

Its platform and technology enables firms to navigate ever-increasing regulatory demands including AML compliance, customer due diligence, Know Your Customer (KYC) and Know Your Business (KYB) procedures.

Its customer base includes over 1,000 property firms, one in two of the top 100 accountancy firms and one in three of the top 200 legal firms.

Triple Private Equity will now take a majority share in the business and will work alongside the existing management to deliver on the company’s next stage of growth, with SmartSearch founders and existing shareholders also retaining a minority in the company.

Martin Cheek, Co-Founder and Managing Director of SmartSearch, says: “Having founded the business with John Dobson, I am incredibly proud of what we have built at SmartSearch, the world class technology we have developed and the talented team we have created.

“SmartSearch has grown from a Regtech start-up to a trailblazing technology company that is driving the digital compliance revolution. This major investment from Triple is a true testament to the hard work of our nearly 200-strong team who, alongside Triple, will be instrumental in this next stage of growth.”

MISSION CRITICAL

Guy Harrison, Chief Executive of SmartSearch, adds: “Triple are an excellent match for SmartSearch in its ambitious next phase of growth. The business is especially looking forward to calling on their deep expertise in scaling mission critical, B2B risk and compliance software.”

Mads Hansen, Head of Investments and Managing and Founding Partner at Triple Private Equity, says: “SmartSearch has shown consistent growth and profitability and provides a high-quality software platform for its clients.”

And Ben Shepherd, Head of Value Creation and Founding Partner at Triple Private Equity, adds: “Leveraging Triple’s expertise and network, we are confident in our ability to support SmartSearch’s growth opportunity as the leading UK compliance platform.”

SmartSearch were advised on the deal by Rothschild (corporate finance), Squire Patton Boggs (legal), KPMG (financial and tax), Park Place (founders advice) and Liberty (management advice).