Search Funds & ETA
The data, capital structures, and operating playbooks behind search funds and entrepreneurship-through-acquisition. Reviews of the Stanford Search Fund Study, long-duration enterprise frameworks, and practical guidance for searchers and their backers.
How Searchers Define Acquisition Criteria
A strict buy-box—deal size, cash flow, industry/geography fit, and seller transition—lets buyers reject bad deals fast and align with lenders.
Search Fund Capital Stack: Sidecar Deal Examples
How senior debt, seller notes, rollover equity, and sidecar checks combine into a fundable search fund capital stack, with sample structures and check sizes.
Long-Duration Enterprises & the Future of Search Deals
Only 77 traditional search funds were raised in 2025, while roughly 1,400 independent sponsors are now active. Inside the committed capital turn: Stanford's new long-duration enterprise data, the 2026 IPC independent sponsor study, and the hybrid structure most operators should start with.
The 2026 Stanford Search Fund Study: What the Data Says About One of the Market's Most Overlooked Asset Classes
The 2026 Stanford Search Fund Study reports a 33.9% aggregate IRR and 4.75x ROI across 862 funds. Here's what the data means for investors — and how to access the asset class.
Search Fund Capital: Raising Bigger Rounds | Catalyst Fund I
Strategies to raise larger search fund capital: focused thesis, investor outreach, blended financing, and clear value-creation plans.