Whittard joins Sovereign

Sovereign Capital, the UK self-styled private equity “buy-and-build specialist”, has appointed Tim Whittard as assistant director to its investment team.

Whittard joins the lower mid-market firm from Gresham, where he was an investment director. While at Gresham he completed a number of investments including Individual Restaurant Company and Olaer Group. A chartered accountant by training, he started his career at PwC Corporate Finance before moving into private equity.

He also holds a degree in Biochemistry and Biotechnology from the University of Birmingham.

Commenting on the appointment, Ryan Robson, managing partner, Sovereign Capital, said: “We are pleased to welcome Tim, he brings a strong transactional capability and has an impressive track record. Our investment team’s expansion reflects the pace of growth in our portfolio and the contribution we are making to the delivery of each company’s buy and build strategy.”

Sovereign Capital recently exited its investment in specialist insurance claims management service provider, CMGL in a £32m sale to Capita Group. This was the first exit from Sovereign’s latest fund, Sovereign Capital Limited Partnership II (SCLP II). Recent platform investments from this fund include the £16m IBO of social housing maintenance provider Kinetics in December. Since the IBO, Sovereign has completed two further follow-on acquisitions for Kinetics and, in common with the rest of the portfolio, the business continues to grow strongly.