Top 10 Traditional Search Fund Investors so far Based on Polls

May 16, 2025
by a professional from The University of Chicago - Booth School of Business in Chicago, IL, USA
Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve been deeply humbled by the incredible engagement and support for the MBA Search Fund Alliance—a community-driven initiative to spotlight what’s working (and what needs fixing) in the search fund ecosystem.
At Caprae Capital, we feel honored to help push the conversation forward—not through criticism, but through accountability, transparency, and collaboration.
This poll may not be perfect, but its resonance reveals a powerful truth: many in our ecosystem care deeply and are ready to build something better together.
💠 After much thought and reflection, we’ve chosen not to publish the Bottom 5 but instead release the Top 10 to create a more collaborative environment. Let’s model the kind of ecosystem we hope to grow—constructive, dignified, and committed to progress.
This survey evaluated search fund investors across six key dimensions:
- Leadership
- Honesty
- Quality of Insights
- Searcher Friendliness
- Helpfulness
- Recommended by Others
With over 5,000 individual data points submitted and 115 fully completed survey submissions, this has become the most transparent and data-rich feedback loop the search fund community has ever seen.
Today, I’m honored to recognize the Top 10 Highest-Rated Search Fund Investors (so far), as voted by searchers around the world. These individuals were consistently recognized for their support, guidance, and principled leadership:
Top 10 Search Fund Investors (So Far):
🥇 Search Fund Partners — 3.76
🥈 ETA Equity — 3.72
🥉 Peterson Partners — 3.57
The Nashton Company — 3.56
The Cambria Group — 3.55
Red Forest Capital — 3.54
Marion Equity Partners — 3.44
TD Investments — 3.43
Relay Investments — 3.38
Futaleufu Partners — 3.38
Across 40 firms, the average score was 3.06, with a median of###-###-#### But the bottom 20% of firms scored below 2.78—a gap that’s hard to ignore.
🔹 The poll remains open until the end of June. Final rankings will be submitted to the MBA Search Fund Alliance for broader distribution. This is just the beginning.
https://lnkd.in/eznmM8-4
from McGill University in San Diego, CA, USA
from The University of Chicago in Chicago, IL, USA