SME Succession & Search Fund Insights
What we're building, thinking, and exploring. Stay updated with our latest releases and thoughts.
SME Leadership: Empowering the Talented Operator to Succeed
A CEO-in-Residence at WAD Capital doesn't build board governance and operational support from scratch. Here's what backs an operator once the acquisition closes: a board installed on day one, an Operations team covering everything from market intelligence to financial leadership, and a cohort of peers solving the same category of problem in parallel.
How AI Tools Are Changing SME Deal Sourcing in Europe
AI tools are changing SME deal sourcing in Europe by replacing manual, relationship-only origination with automated screening of company registries, financial signals, and succession indicators across thousands of businesses at once.
How to Choose Between Starting a Business and Acquiring One
Starting from zero and acquiring an existing SME carry very different risk profiles. A framework for deciding which path actually fits you.
WAD Capital Hackathon — Building PE Deal Tools
On Saturday 13, WAD Capital and Herspective brought early-career professionals in finance and tech together to build the tools PE investment teams actually use. Watch the full video.
The Difference Between a Business That Sells and One That Closes
Most SMEs that fail to transfer aren't bad businesses. They're businesses a buyer couldn't operate without the founder. Here's what actually makes an SME transferable.
Private Equity vs Search Fund: What Is the Difference for an Operator?
Most SME owners start succession planning too late and sell to the wrong buyer. Here is what a structured SME succession process looks like, and how WAD Capital approaches it differently.
What Buy-and-Build Strategy Actually Requires from an Operator
Buy-and-build in fragmented European SME markets is an operational strategy, not a financial one. What it demands from the executive running the platform and what breaks when that's underestimated.
Why Family Businesses in Europe Cannot Find Internal Successors
Most European SME owners want to hand their business to family. Most cannot. Here is why the successor gap exists, what it costs, and what structured external succession looks like in practice.
What Happens Between Handshake and Closing: The 90-Day Path from Term Sheet to Acquisition
From signed term sheet to closing day: the 90-day acquisition process explained for SME owners, including due diligence, financing, and what happens on day one.
The First 90 Days: How a New CEO Learns a Business They Just Bought
What a new CEO does in the first 100 days after buying a small business. The operational sequence, mapped against WAD Capital's 12-step CIR programme.
Why Some Founders Stay After Selling: The Case for Seller Reinvestment in SME Succession
Some founders reinvest in the company they just sold and stay involved. Here is how seller reinvestment works in SME succession, and why it changes the dynamic between buyer and seller.
What Happens to a Belgian Business When There Is No Succession Plan
Belgian SMEs employ 66% of the country's workforce. When ownership transfers fail, jobs go with them. What the data shows — and what a structured transfer looks like.
How WAD Capital Sources SME Acquisitions: The Deal Sourcing Strategy Behind the CEO-in-Residence Programme
WAD Capital sources SME acquisitions off-market through Generative DealFlow™ and a structured 12-step programme. Here is how the sourcing approach works.
What Is a CEO-in-Residence Programme? How It Works in Europe
A CEO-in-Residence acquires and runs a European SME with institutional backing. Learn how WAD Capital's programme works: equity, financing, timeline, and process.
What Is Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition and Is It Right for Europe?
ETA lets experienced executives acquire and lead profitable SMEs instead of building from scratch. Here is how the model works, what the data shows, and why Europe is the next frontier.
How Buy-and-Build Strategy Works in Fragmented European SME Markets
How buy-and-build strategy creates value in fragmented European SME markets — and what WAD Capital's Kaeron and OmniSecur platforms show about executing it in practice.
WAD Capital x Herspective
WAD Capital partnered with Herspective for a live private equity case session in Brussels. Watch the full video and apply for the internship programme.
What Makes a Sector Right for Acquisition? How CIRs Build Their Investment Thesis
Four criteria separate acquisition-ready sectors from wishful thinking. How WAD Capital CIRs build investment theses — and what the portfolio proves.
How Search Funds Generate Returns for Investors
The 2024 Stanford GSB Search Fund Study records a 35.1% aggregate IRR across 681 funds since 1984. Here is what drives those returns, where the international data diverges, and how WAD Capital's cohort structure addresses the gap.
What Makes WAD Capital Different from Standard Private Equity?
WAD Capital operates as private equity in Belgium where standard buyout funds do not go: profitable SMEs with no succession plan. Here is how the model works and what it produces for sellers, operators, and investors.