ECI Partners
| Industry | Private equity |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1976 |
| Headquarters | London, Manchester and New York |
| Products | Private equity funds, Buyouts |
Number of employees | +50 (2024) |
| Website | www |
ECI Partners is a growth focused private equity group based in the UK and the US, first established by the Bank of England in 1976.
ECI typically invests up to £200m of equity (as part of an initial transaction) in businesses valued at up to £300m across four sectors: services, consumer, technology/software, and healthcare.
It was a founder member of both the European Venture Capital Association (now "Invest Europe") and British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association ("BVCA") in 1983 having organised its first management buyout (for Ansafone) in 1980. Early investments included Williams Holdings – owner of Chubb and Kidde – founded by Nigel Rudd and Brian McGowan, Shanks & McEwan, National Express and Bloomsbury Publishing.
The turn of the millennium saw ECI raise their seventh fund (ECI7 - £175m) with leading growth investments including Thinkmoney and LateRooms (sold for a 9x return on investment).
In September 2023, ECI announced the final close of its twelfth buyout fund, ECI 12, hitting its £1 billion hard cap, beating a £900 million target.