Grant Thornton’s Australian partners to vote on sale to investor-backed platform
Grant Thornton’s Australian partnership is set to vote on a board-proposed sale to US private equity-backed business Grant Thornton Advisors, in a deal said to be north of $800 million.
Grant Thornton Advisors has expanded to around 20 countries across the world since its formation following the purchase of the accounting and consulting firm’s US branch by New York-based private equity house New Mountain Capital in 2024.
On the cards since at least October of last year when investment bank Greenhill was engaged to explore a sale, Grant Thornton’s local board has now put forward the US group ahead of any potential interest from UK private equity rival Cinven.
“This proposed transaction promises an exciting new chapter for our firm,” said Said Jahani, who took over as CEO in the middle of last year. “Joining the Grant Thornton Advisors platform would give us accelerated access to emerging tech capabilities and growth capital. It’s about seizing the right growth lever, and we are incredibly excited for what lies ahead.”
The Australian business
Grant Thornton has an Australian headcount of more than 1,500 employees spread across offices in each mainland state capital together with a sixth outlet in Cairns, including almost 200 partners, who together generate annual revenues pushing $400 million. According to a report in the AFR, a source familiar with negotiations on the deal said it was worth more than $800 million.
Should it be approved by the partnership, Australia will become the latest country to join Grant Thornton Advisors following Denmark last month and New Zealand in November, but the first major territory in the Asia Pacific, a region which last year grew by double-digit figures and accounted for $1.4 billion of the firm’s $8.5 billion in collective global revenues.
The hottest battleground between New Mountain Capital and Cinven has been the European market, with the latter picking up Grant Thornton’s business in the UK, Germany and Czech Republic but having been outdone by New Mountain elsewhere, with its assets now tallying ten, including in the top ten major economies of France, Spain, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Poland.
Throwing in other locations in the Middle East and Central and South America, and Grant Thornton Advisors is already up to a global headcount of around 25,000, with Grant Thornton Australia and its international suitor both expressing an ambition to build a modern, highly-integrated cross-border professional services firm while also opening up further opportunities in the Asia Pacific.
“Grant Thornton is a standout firm in Australia – with strong momentum, exceptional leadership, and a culture that has earned deep respect in its market,” Grant Thornton Advisors CEO Jim Peko said of the deal. “Its intention to join our platform reflects a shared ambition: to build something more connected, more capable, and more forward-looking for our clients and for our people.”
