Graycliff Partners

Graycliff Partners is the 2011 spinout of HSBC Capital's US mid-market private equity team, led by Managing Partners Duke Punhong and Andrew Trigg. The team had been investing HSBC's balance sheet in lower-middle-market buyouts since the 1990s. The spinout created an independent, partner-owned firm free to raise third-party institutional capital without bank-affiliated investment restrictions.

Graycliff writes equity checks of $15 million to $60 million for North American companies with $3 million to $15 million in EBITDA. The firm pursues both majority-control buyouts and minority growth investments. Typical transaction structures include founder succession plans, corporate divestitures, management buyouts, and structured growth capital.

The firm concentrates on business services, specialty manufacturing, healthcare services, and industrial technology. There is no publicly documented exclusion list, but Graycliff's deal flow and inventory of closed transactions indicate that it avoids asset-heavy commodity businesses, deep technology, real estate, and consumer-facing retail. The investment team's expertise is concentrated in B2B environments.

Graycliff emphasizes proprietary deal sourcing through relationships with regional intermediaries, corporate executives, and legacy HSBC commercial banking contacts across the United States and Canada. The firm does participate in limited auctions when necessary, but its stated preference is for off-market founder-led transactions and corporate carve-outs where price competition is lower and structuring expertise is rewarded.

Yes. Alongside Graycliff Private Equity Partners IV, the firm manages a co-investment vehicle that allows limited partners to participate directly in individual platform deals. Earlier fund vintages remain under management, giving the firm an active portfolio of over 25 companies at any time. There is no publicly known separate credit fund, sector-specific vehicle, or philanthropic foundation.

The investment committee is anchored by Managing Partners Duke Punhong and Andrew Trigg, who have worked together since their tenure within HSBC Capital. The lean partnership structure means final investment authority rests with this small senior group, without a large external advisory board or operating-partner veto. Specific committee composition beyond the named managing partners has not been publicly detailed.