Finlay, tell us about Goodbody Capital Partners. 

Goodbody Capital Partners (GCP) is a private equity manager that primarily manages AIB’s private equity investment activities by investing directly into established companies (Direct Investments) and in seed, venture capital and private equity funds (Fund Investments). GCP was previously known as AIB Equity Capital, before moving to Goodbody in 2023. Goodbody is the right home for the business to help it grow and succeed. The future is bright for GCP, we hope to diversify over the coming years and manage capital for other third parties. 

What does a typical investment look like? 

Most of the money we manage is invested into Irish based funds in the private equity and venture capital space. We also manage approximately €150m of investments directly into Irish companies.  GCP is a “minority, growth capital” investor, meaning that we do not control the companies we invest in, but provide investment to help them grow and share in the value created by owning an equity stake. The companies we invest in are successful Irish businesses, raising additional capital to help them expand outside Ireland. Although GCP is always a minority investor, we are actively involved with the Boards of our investments and help them on areas such as strategy, exit planning and market intelligence (MI).

What sectors do you invest in?

Our focus is always on opportunities to help Irish businesses grow and therefore we are sector agnostic. We have invested in a wide range of sectors so far, including renewable energy (both wind and solar), security products, consumer goods, legal services and software. There are some sectors which we don’t invest in such as oil & gas extraction or firearms manufacturing.

How important is ESG in your investment decision making?

ESG is hugely important when analysing any investment opportunity, particularly as AIB has such strong focus on ESG. When carrying out due diligence, we will look at the company’s ESG policies and ensure they are appropriate or that there is a commitment to improve ESG metrics in a tangible and measurable way. Three of our direct investments are in the renewable energy industry.

What’s your exit strategy?

As a minority investor we do not control exit timing, but we always work with management teams and other shareholders who share our exit objectives. Typically, we like to achieve an exit in a 3–5-year period and will only make an investment if other shareholders are working to the same timescales.

Can you tell us about a memorable investment?

FULFIL (Vitamin and Protein Bars) is an investment that stands out for me. This investment was a great success for us, we invested €10m and sold our stake for several times our investment when the business was acquired by Ferrero. The journey was an exciting one, I was on the Board which meant I got to enjoy tasting new flavours and I was certainly popular at home when I would come through the door with a box of samples for my kids to try!

What is your view on the current investment landscape?

The Irish market is competitive but there are still many Irish businesses looking to raise capital to fund their growth. I think we’ll see more investment activity as interest rates come down and as inflation falls.

Describe your team in three words.

Smart, ambitious, and awesome.

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