Mid-market private equity firm LDC has grown its team in the East Midlands and East of England with the appointment of Simon Peacock as investment director and Mikayil Salahov as investment manager.
Peacock joins LDC following more than 15 years at Alantra, an investment banking and asset management firm focusing on the mid-market.
As a partner there, he advised companies on both a regional and sector basis, including consumer, industrials and business services, to help ensure the smooth completion of M&A transactions.
He also has extensive experience within the food industry, as director of food & drink at Catalyst, prior to its acquisition by Alantra, following eight years as a finance manager at United Biscuits.
He will be responsible for identifying potential investment opportunities, leading transactions and supporting the management teams of LDC’s portfolio businesses as they pursue their growth ambitions.
Salahov arrives from PwC’s transaction services practice in Reading, where he focused on large cap and mid-market transactions. His experience spans several sectors, including technology media and telecoms, business services and retail.
The duo are the second and third additions to LDC’s East Midlands and East of England team – led by partner David Bains – during the last six months, following the appointment of investment manager Nicole Wong in April.
The team covers major cities Derby, Nottingham, Leicester, Milton Keynes, Cambridge and Norwich, and surrounding areas.
This includes investments in global programmatic advertising company Blis and an exit of Nottingham-based managed IT and cyber services provider Littlefish.
“Our East Midlands and East team has always been an important part of LDC investing more than £500m over a sustained period of time to help management teams grow their businesses,” said Bains.
“In a further sign of commitment to the region, we now have the largest team we’ve had here, and its collective enthusiasm, expertise and local insight will help us to support more ambitious mid-market business leaders than ever.”
LDC is committed to investing in 100 mid-market companies nationwide over the next five years.