London & UK · HVAC · Electrical · Energy · Construction
We acquire established businesses from founders who are ready for their next chapter — and we invest the management depth, capital and commitment to carry on what they built.
"Most business owners spend years worrying about who will take care of what they have built. We exist to be the answer to that question."
— Benjamin Minkah, Founder & PrincipalOur Approach
Most acquirers want to strip costs, load debt and sell within three years. We are building something different — a group of strong, well-run businesses in the UK trades sector that grow together over time.
We acquire the whole business — the team, the customer relationships, the culture. Your staff are not a cost to be cut. They are the reason the business works, and we treat them that way.
We bring management experience, financial discipline and the benefits of being part of a broader group — shared resources, buying power and cross-sector relationships — to help the business reach its next level.
We explain every stage of the deal in plain terms. No hidden agendas, no last-minute renegotiations. The price we agree is the price we pay. You will always know exactly where you stand.
Full acquisition, phased exit, earn-out, or you staying on in a leadership role — we will find a structure that works for your circumstances and gives you the outcome you are looking for.
Your staff, customers and competitors will not know a conversation is happening until you choose to tell them. Discretion is built into everything we do from the very first call.
We are not working to a fund deadline or a quarter-end pressure. We move at the pace that makes sense for you — whether that is a three-month close or a carefully managed 18-month transition.
Commercially sharp.
Operationally rigorous.
Built for the long term.
Honest about everything.
Where We Focus
We concentrate on UK trade services businesses — sectors we understand commercially and operationally. We have done the work to know what good looks like in each one.
Heating, ventilation and air conditioning contractors and building services companies. We are particularly interested in businesses with established commercial maintenance contracts and a trusted workforce.
Commercial and industrial electricians and building systems specialists. This sector has strong long-term tailwinds from the UK's electrification agenda — we want to be well-positioned within it.
Solar installation, battery storage, energy auditing and sustainability consultancies. The energy transition is accelerating across UK commercial building stock — we are positioning our group to benefit from it.
Specialist subcontractors, fit-out businesses and commercial building maintenance companies. We look for businesses with a stable pipeline, a skilled team and management already in place below the owner level.
Why Sell to Us
After years of building a business, the last thing most owners want is to hand it to someone who sees it as an asset to be restructured. The worry is always the same: what happens to the team? Will the customers stay? Will the name survive?
We are buyers who have spent careers inside large organisations — Shell, HSBC, PA Consulting — applying rigorous financial analysis, commercial judgement and legal literacy to complex problems. We bring that discipline to acquisitions, without the private equity culture that goes with it.
Our goal is to build a group of strong, complementary businesses in the UK trade services sector. That means each company we acquire gets the resources, management support and operational backing to become a better version of itself.
Have a Confidential Conversation →We have no fund cycle, no LP return date and no pressure to exit within three years. We acquire because we want to own and operate great businesses — not because we are building a portfolio to flip.
We bring financial modelling rigour from careers at Shell and HSBC, and a legal background covering commercial transactions and employment law. We know how deals work from both sides of the table.
Becoming part of our group means access to shared buying power, management expertise and operational resources. It does not mean head office interference, redundancy rounds or culture change imposed from above.
Our strategic partnership with Verdani Capital — a firm with a proven UK acquisition track record across nine companies — gives us the deal structure depth and network access to get transactions over the line efficiently and fairly.
The Process
We have designed this process to be low-pressure and straightforward. You can stop at any stage with no obligation. Most conversations begin long before any paperwork is signed.
No paperwork. No NDA on day one. Just an honest conversation about your business, what you have built, and what you are considering. We will tell you clearly whether we think we are a good fit — and if we are not, we will say so.
If we both want to explore further, we sign a mutual NDA before you share anything financial. We then ask for three years of accounts and a broad picture of the business — nothing more than you are comfortable sharing at this stage.
We carry out a thorough financial and commercial analysis and come back to you with a written indicative offer. We will walk you through every assumption — there is nothing hidden in our numbers.
We agree the deal structure — price, payment terms, any earn-out or transition arrangements — in a clear written document before entering exclusivity. No verbal commitments that disappear later.
A structured, proportionate process — typically four to eight weeks. We are confirming what you have told us, not looking for reasons to renegotiate. Any issues that arise are discussed openly.
Legal completion, funds transfer and a transition managed around your business, your team and your customers. We work with you through this — not around you.
Who We Are
A founder-led team backed by experienced strategic partners who share our commitment to doing acquisitions the right way.
Benjamin is the founder of Minkah Capital and an Associate of Verdani Capital — working directly alongside Lee Anthony-Smith on acquisition strategy and deal structuring. He brings over 12 years of business analysis, commercial consulting and legal experience across some of the UK's most demanding organisations.
His career spans HSBC's Global Standards Sanctions programme, PA Consulting, HMRC — where he served as Senior Business Analyst on the EMCS (Excise Movement and Control System) — and Shell, where he led front-office performance analysis and business intelligence in a high-stakes commercial environment. He has also built and operated his own consulting businesses: Minkah Consulting Ltd and Minkstrading Ltd, giving him first-hand experience of running, growing and structuring a founder-owned enterprise.
Alongside his commercial career, Benjamin holds training in employment law and commercial legal structuring — giving him the rare ability to operate fluently across a financial model, a legal document and a boardroom conversation. He understands what it takes to negotiate, structure and close a transaction, and what business owners deserve from a buyer who is asking them to trust their life's work to someone new.
Minkah Capital was built on the conviction that the UK's trade services sector — HVAC, electrical, energy services and construction — deserves capital that comes with genuine operational commitment, not just a cheque and a restructuring plan.
Lee Anthony-Smith is an award-winning mergers and acquisitions specialist with over two decades of hands-on deal experience across the UK. He is the founder and managing partner of Verdani Capital — a firm with shareholdings in seven UK companies and a sustained track record of acquiring, growing and operating founder-owned businesses.
Lee began his career consulting for top-tier London law firms including McKenna & Co, Nabarro Nathanson and Linklaters, before moving into investment at boutique firm Mansford Holdings. He completed his first acquisition in 2014, and between 2015 and 2017 acquired nine companies through BID Assets, his investment vehicle for businesses operating below their potential. In 2018 he founded Verdani Investments — now Verdani Capital — with a mandate to acquire established, profitable UK businesses ethically and for the long term.
Lee brings to Minkah Capital what only comes from completing deals across multiple sectors over more than a decade: the instinct for which transactions will close, the experience to structure them fairly, and the network that makes things happen. He has been featured as a business expert on BBC Radio and Sky News, and his firm is currently active in construction and trade services roll-ups across the UK.
Lee works alongside Benjamin Minkah on a deal-by-deal basis, bringing the institutional weight of Verdani Capital's track record and network to each transaction — ensuring every acquisition Minkah Capital pursues is structured with the same discipline as a much larger firm.
What Sellers Tell Us
Most business owners considering a sale share the same worries. Here is how we approach each one.
"I'm worried about what happens to my staff."
We acquire the whole team. Your employees are the reason the business works. We do not make redundancies to hit a margin target — we invest in the people who built what we are buying.
"I don't want my customers to know I'm selling."
Every conversation happens under strict confidentiality. Your customers, your suppliers and your competitors will not know anything is happening until you choose to tell them.
"I've heard buyers renegotiate at the last minute."
We agree a price, we put it in writing, and we pay it. We have no incentive to chip — we are building a business, not flipping an asset. What we agree is what you receive.
"I'm not sure I'm actually ready yet."
Good. The best conversations happen before a decision is made. Reach out now, understand your options, and make the decision on your own timeline. There is no pressure from us.
Who We Are Looking For
If you are a business owner thinking about what comes next — whether that is a full exit, a partial sale, or simply the beginning of a conversation — we would genuinely like to hear from you.
Not sure if you fit? Reach out anyway. There is no pressure, no obligation, and no cost to a conversation. The best time to start talking is before you have made a decision.
No paperwork. No commitment. Just an honest conversation with someone who understands what you have built and knows how to value it.
Start a Conversation
No pressure. No sales pitch. Just a confidential, obligation-free conversation about your business and your goals.
You do not need to have made a decision. Most of the best conversations we have are with owners who are just beginning to think about it.
We respond personally within one business day.