The Brief:
HPX Group, owner of Hamilton Locke, hires Rothschild & Co to prep a potential $200m+ sale.
The move comes as private equity circles Australia’s booming professional services sector.
HPX Group, parent to law firm Hamilton Locke, is reportedly gearing up for a sale, tapping Rothschild & Co to gauge buyer appetite. The deal will be led by banker Chris Carnemolla, who worked on Chemist Warehouse’s $35bn Sigma reverse takeover, alongside Rothschild’s UK office.
The business was founded in 2018 by big wig Nick Humphrey, who was also the former global co-head of M&A at K&L Gates. It’s now ballooned to more than 450 staff across Aus and NZ.
It owns:
Hamilton Locke;
compliance outfit Source;
cyber firm Helios Salinger; and
sustainability consultancy Materra.
HPX pulled in $116.8m revenue in FY24, up 50% year-on-year, with Hamilton Locke contributing $99.9m. Its EBITDA jumped to $21.5m from $7.1m.
The timing is apt, with PE interest red-hot.
Quadrant bought into LegalVision, Adamantem snapped up Qantm, and Allegro Funds holds Slater & Gordon. With Accenture and KKR paying big for cyber and ESG consultancies, HPX’s diversified model could prove a magnet for bidders.
The group shelved an IPO last year, but with all employees holding equity, this could be the big payday they’ve been waiting for.