Grant Thornton Brings in Investor to Drive US Private Equity Business
Private equity firms have made waves in the accounting industry, with top 10 firms turning to them for both financial resources and
expertise. Grant Thornton recently brought on board an investor to spearhead its US private equity business and strengthen their consulting teams’ expertise.
Grant Thornton will use its substantial investment from private-equity firm New Mountain Capital to expand its services offerings for clients managing large investments with complex transactions and enhance capabilities in areas like tax and financial reporting. Furthermore, they intend to increase their international footprint.
Grant Thornton stands out as a global professional services firm by offering integrated approaches that meet both client needs and market requirements. By adding new capabilities and expanding reach, it can provide greater services and value to clients existing and potential alike.
A new leadership team will support these strategic initiatives, building on the success of the firm’s US private equity practice – already one of its largest in its network. Newly hired managing directors Bill McManus and Alex Arata bring over 30 years of experience to these roles, with work on executive management teams for mid-sized to Fortune 100 companies across a wide variety of industries.
McManus will lead Arata’s new Value Creation Planning service for public- and private-equity clients. This innovative service helps companies take a more holistic approach to creating shareholder value by considering operational efficiencies, cost reductions, customer experience pricing and digital finance transformation – among others. Arata will develop new relationships and drive cross-functional partnerships within Arata to assist its clients meet their business objectives.
Both will join the Strategy and Transactions practice at BDO where they will report directly to Greg Westfall, national managing principal of the Private Equity group. Their deep industry knowledge will further bolster BDO’s ability to assist private-equity funds and their portfolio companies create value through both organic and inorganic strategies.
Cherry Bekaert and EisnerAmper, two top 25 law firms, also recently recruited private-equity investors as they expanded their mergers and acquisitions capabilities, an increasingly essential aspect of competitive advantage in today’s marketplace.
New Mountain Capital’s partnership will enable Grant Thornton to adopt an alternative practice structure, in which its audit practices remain majority owned by local partners while nonaudit businesses will be managed independently by third-party owners. This structure ensures unwavering commitment to clients while upholding integrity in core assurance services. CDPQ Global Investment Group and OA Private Capital were both also minority equity investors alongside New Mountain Capital.
