The ETA Awards set to return on 5 November 2025

Building on the momentum of the previous two years, Gerald Edelman is thrilled to announce the return of the Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA) Awards for its third consecutive year. 

The ETA Awards spotlights promising and established searchers and CEOs who have executed outstanding acquisitions, addressed succession challenges in SMEs, unlocked value for sellers, driven growth in their acquired businesses, and delivered strong returns for investors. 

Over the past few years, the number and reach of search funds has increased significantly. According to IESE Business School’s 2024 study, 121 of the total 320 international search funds were either searching for an acquisition or fundraising for a planned acquisition, out of the remaining 199, 146 resulted in acquisitions by late 2023. The study reports a median purchase price of $11.7 million for acquisitions outside of North America, with average target revenues of $7.8 million and an EBITDA margin of 24%, reflecting both a broadening global footprint and increasing sector diversification heading into 2025. 

Last year’s awards were a resounding success, bringing together 150 entrepreneurs from across the search and acquisition community. 

This year, two new award categories will be introduced – ‘Serial Acquirer of the Year’ and ‘Intern of the Year’, and for the first time ever we are opening award submissions to international entrants. 

2025 will also see the return of our judging panel – Bramley Johnson, Founding Partner of Victoriam Equity and active search fund investor, Alex Glasner, former ETA award winner and searcher behind the acquisition of Workpays in 2021; and Lisa Conmy, Partner at JMW and trusted adviser to entrepreneurs across the UK. 

Carl Lundberg, CEO of Gerald Edelman, Founder and Host of The Found & Funded Podcast and Founder of The ETA Awards, will once again be hosting the awards, and returning as confirmed sponsors are Marriott Harrison, BizCrunch, JMW and Shawbrook, with more sponsors and partners to be announced soon.  

“It’s a really exciting time for the search fund and wider ETA community, so I am thrilled to be hosting the ETA Awards for its third consecutive year,” said Carl. “The success of the past two years is a testament to the fantastic community of searchers we have in the UK. I’m looking forward to expanding the reach of the awards to the international ETA community, building on the momentum and celebrating even more outstanding achievements through this year’s awards.” 

The ETA Awards will make its return to Landing Forty-Two, in the heart of the city, on Wednesday 5 November 2025.