Long-term capital for acquisition entrepreneurs

Alongside our direct strategy in software, we provide long-term capital and hands-on support to entrepreneurs stepping into the CEO seat via acquisition in European small businesses.

Operators, not allocators

SpringWater’s investors have built global category leaders: Hostinger, WebPros and Contabo in hosting and infrastructure; NordVPN, Oxylabs and nexos.ai in cybersecurity, data and AI. Our ecosystem is over 4000 experts and more than 50 companies.

1000

experts in our ecosystem

companies built and backed

We follow Stanford ETA model

We back traditional search funds (the Stanford ETA model) across Europe via search capital, acquisition capital and equity gaps. We fund 12–24 months of full-time searching, aimed to acquire one profitable company and step in as a CEO.

What we look for

Target acquisition companies should be profitable, stable SMEs with opportunities to grow – in software, services, or manufacturing. We are open to back first-time searchers, and can lead the rounds, too.

Stage
Search capital, acquisition capital, equity gaps

Profile
Stable, profitable SMEs with clear growth levers

Size
€1–5m EBITDA

Ticket
€50k to €10m

Sectors
Software, services, manufacturing

Geography
Europe first

Revenue: €1-10m ARR

Profitability: cash flow positive

Business type: B2B SaaS

Geography: Global, with focus in Europe

Ownership stake: majority; full or partial exit for the founder(s)

RecurriOwnership stake: majority; full or partial exit for the founder(s)

Company age: 3-5+ years

Stable, loyal customer base; low churn

Self-serve offering / product-led approach

Software thesis or opportunity? You get more from us – deeper support from our direct strategy and more flexibility on structure. And one promise upfront: we will never compete with you – the company you source in software is yours.

Helping during the search and long after close

Searching

We built SpringWater’s origination engine from scratch – defining a searchable universe, sourcing and enriching target data, building direct-to-founder relationships. We can help searchers set it up well.

________

Due diligence

We have advisor relationships and experience to help you during the acquisition phase.

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Operating

Our ecosystem brings real operating depth in the areas that decide outcomes after acquisition:

GTM and marketing-led growth
B2B sales — from SMB to enterprise
AI capability and automation
Customer support at scale
Payments and related infrastructure
M&A and roll-up execution

________

Exiting

We’ll help you select the right advisors and position the company for a successful exit.

If you are raising or have identified a specific opportunity, we would like to hear from you early – reach out here.

Talk to us