Primary Capital Partners

Primary invests up to £50 million per transaction, targeting businesses valued between £20 million and £100 million. The capital typically funds management buyouts, growth equity and succession transitions. This check size positions the firm in the UK mid-market, where it can serve as a control or significant minority partner to founder-led and family-owned businesses.

Primary operates as a partnership. The firm's website lists a managing partner, investment directors and partners leading day-to-day investment activities. Specific individual names and titles are not publicly disclosed on the current team page, but the structure signals collective decision-making by a senior, long-tenured group rather than a single founder-CIO.

Primary runs an in-house deal origination team that uses proprietary technology to map markets and screen acquisition targets. Rather than depending solely on auction processes, the team identifies and approaches companies directly. This capability also operates inside portfolio companies, helping management teams find and execute bolt-on acquisitions.

Primary explicitly targets B2B services and technology companies. Historic and current investments span professional education, industrial materials, rail infrastructure and testing services. The firm does not invest in consumer-facing brands or retail, staying within business-to-business sectors where recurring revenue and contractual relationships are common.

The firm has used M&A in over half of its investments. Once Primary backs a management team, its in-house origination unit maps the competitive landscape, identifies potential add-on targets and helps execute acquisitions. The goal is to consolidate fragmented markets, gain new customers or acquire intellectual property, often funded with additional equity from Primary.