FUND ADMINISTRATION, TRUST & CORPORATE SERVICES M&A
Specialist M&A advice for Fund Administration, Trust & Corporate Services
Dyer Baade & Company advises founders, shareholders, boards and investors on strategic transactions across Fund Administration, Trust, Fiduciary and Corporate Services in the UK, Crown Dependencies and Western Europe.
We combine sector knowledge, senior transaction experience and proprietary market research with particular expertise in owner-managed businesses and transactions involving Private Equity.
Luxembourg - Ireland - United Kingdom - Jersey - Guernsey - Switzerland - Netherlands - Cyprus - Dubai - Isle of Man
SPECIALIST SECTOR ADVICE
Different business models. Different buyers. Different drivers of value.
Fund administrators, trust companies and corporate services providers are often grouped together, but buyers assess them very differently. Client characteristics, revenue visibility, regulatory exposure, technology, geographic reach, management depth and the transferability of relationships can all materially influence strategic value.
Our advice starts with understanding those differences. We help owners and investors assess how a business is likely to be viewed by different counterparties, what drives buyer appetite and how strategic positioning can influence both valuation and execution certainty.
WHERE WE FOCUS
Three related markets with distinct transaction dynamics.
01
Fund Administration
Businesses serving private equity, private credit, infrastructure, real estate and other investment managers through fund accounting, administration, reporting and related services.
Buyers tend to focus heavily on client quality, retention, fund-launch visibility, technology capability and exposure to growing alternative-asset managers.
02
Trust & Fiduciary Services
Private client trust companies, fiduciary businesses and specialist providers serving families, entrepreneurs and internationally mobile private clients.
Transaction outcomes often depend on client retention, management succession, relationship transferability, jurisdiction and the strength of the underlying advisory proposition.
03
Corporate Services
Providers of company administration, governance, corporate secretarial, entity management and related services to international businesses and investors.
Buyers increasingly assess not only recurring revenues, but the strategic value of client relationships, cross-selling potential, jurisdictional capabilities and technology-enabled operating leverage.
FUND, TRUST AND CORPORATE SERVICES INSIGHTS
Analysis for owners and investors
FUND, TRUST & CORPORATE SERVICES
Fund Administration M&A in 2026
Why Buyers Pay Premium Valuations for Certain Platforms
READ INSIGHT →
FUND, TRUST & CORPORATE SERVICES
The Trust and Fiduciary M&A Market in 2026
Who Is Buying, What They Want and Why It Matters
READ INSIGHT →
FUND, TRUST & CORPORATE SERVICES
Selling a Trust or Fiduciary Company
Lessons from the Most Successful Transactions
READ INSIGHT →
FUND, TRUST & CORPORATE SERVICES
The Hidden Risk in Trust & Fiduciary M&A
Choosing the Wrong Buyer
READ INSIGHT →
OUR MARKET PERSPECTIVE
Consolidation is being driven by more than scale.
01 Quality - The sector continues to attract strategic and financial buyers because of recurring revenues, regulatory barriers, long-standing client relationships and opportunities to build broader international platforms.
02 Long-term thinking - At the same time, buyers are becoming increasingly sophisticated about what they are acquiring. The strongest businesses are typically those with transferable client relationships, resilient recurring revenues, clear management succession, attractive jurisdictions and a credible path to organic growth.
03 Resilience - This creates meaningful valuation differences between businesses that can appear similar at first glance.
SELECTED TRANSACTION EXPERIENCE
A strategic cross-border transaction.
SANDSHORE SERVICES → PRAXIS GROUP
Strategic fit beyond simple scale
Dyer Baade acted as lead financial adviser to the shareholders of Dubai-based Sandshore on its sale to Praxis Group, an international private wealth and corporate services group headquartered in Guernsey.
The transaction brought together Sandshore’s local market expertise, client relationships and mainland UAE capabilities with Praxis’ broader international infrastructure and service offering.
“Daniel and his team have delivered a value that I had not imagined. Besides the financial aspects, they gave me peace of mind. I trusted them and relied on them fully.”
Nina Sidalova, Chief Executive Officer, Sandshore
HOW WE ADVISE
The foundations of our advice.
01
Sector judgement
An understanding of regulated, relationship-led businesses and the issues that affect strategic value.
02
Strategic positioning
A clear explanation of why the business matters to different buyers - not simply what it earns today.
03
International reach
Focused mapping of strategic and financial buyers across relevant jurisdictions and financial centres.
04
Senior execution
Experienced advisers remain directly involved from initial options analysis through negotiation and completion.
STRATEGIC OPTIONS
The transaction is often only one of several options.
For many owners in Fund Administration, Trust and Corporate Services, the first question is not simply whether to sell. It may be whether to remain independent, bring in a minority investor, merge with another business, make acquisitions or join a larger international platform.
We help shareholders assess those alternatives before deciding whether a formal transaction process is appropriate.
01 Should we sell, merge or remain independent?
02 Would minority investment accelerate growth while preserving control?
03 What would make the business more attractive to institutional buyers in 12–24 months?
SENIOR SECTOR PERSPECTIVE
Stuart Dyer
Chairman & Co-Founder
Stuart brings more than four decades of Financial Services operating, board and transaction experience. His career includes senior roles across KPMG, Barings, Schroders, Friends Provident, Close Brothers, Cofunds and Ascot Lloyd.
His perspective is particularly relevant in regulated, relationship-led businesses where governance, succession, management depth and institutionalisation can materially affect strategic options and value.
Considering a strategic transaction?