Inveready raises €20M for its first search fund, targeting European SMEs
What's the deal? InvereadyDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has raised €20 million ($22.4 million) for Inveready Searchers I, FCRE, S.A., its first fund dedicated to search funds — a private equity strategy that backs entrepreneurs who buy and run established small and medium-sized businesses. It is the Barcelona-based manager's first move into this segment, a departure from the technology bets it is known for.
Why now? The fund arrives as search funds gain ground in Europe. An IESE Business School study cited by ExpansiónDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → placed Spain at the end of 2025 as the leader outside the US and Canada, with 98 search funds and 56 acquisitions.
What's the endgame? Inveready raised the capital in about a month and plans to mobilise up to three times that amount — €60 million — through direct co-investments by its shareholders. The money comes mainly from family offices, each committing no more than 5%, while the management team led by Jaume Argerich contributes 12% of the capital.
The vehicle, run by Roger Piqué, Ignacio Puig, Ernest Gassó, and Argerich, has already closed four deals — two in Spain and two elsewhere in Europe — across corrugated cardboard, industry, critical maintenance services, and robotics. It debuts by acquiring a mature portfolio of searcher investments from a family office, shortening its investment period by one to two years.
How it works: The fund takes minority stakes alongside other investors and a searcher who operates the company. It targets profitable SMEs in mature sectors with growing sales, a diversified client base, recurring revenue, EBITDA margins above 10%, and strong cash conversion. The typical investment period runs about six years.
Inveready, which manages around €945 million across its private equity platform, frames the model as a solution to succession gaps in family businesses. "Entrepreneurship through acquisition connects business owners seeking continuity for their companies with professionals who take over management," the firm said (translated from Spanish).
The signal: The launch marks a shift from deal-sourcing to execution: an institutional manager offering family offices a structured route into search funds without building an in-house team. With Inveready already committed to eight other search funds, the model is maturing from a niche into a recognised asset class in European private equity.
Read more: lavanguardia.com
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
