DealCircle

Established in 2018, DealCircle operates as a technology-based matching platform within the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) sector, specifically targeting the small to mid-cap market. The company was founded in Hamburg, Germany, by Kai Hesselmann, Graig Gröbli, and Florian Adomeit, who leveraged their extensive backgrounds in private equity, M&A, and technology to address inefficiencies in the transaction process. Hesselmann and Gröbli, having both been partners at a mid-cap private equity investor, experienced firsthand the challenges M&A advisors faced in identifying suitable buyers, which led to the creation of DealCircle.

DealCircle's core business revolves around a proprietary platform that utilizes intelligent algorithms and a vast database to connect M&A advisors with qualified buyers, including family offices, private equity firms, and corporate entities. For sell-side M&A advisors, the service streamlines the creation of buyer longlists, a traditionally time-consuming process. The platform performs a data-driven analysis against its database of over one million contacts, after which a team of in-house analysts refines these automated lists into curated shortlists. This service is provided free of charge to the advisors. The company's revenue is generated through a success-based fee, paid by the buyer upon the successful completion of a deal. For buyers, the platform serves as a deal sourcing tool, providing access to a flow of relevant M&A projects that match their specified investment criteria.

The firm has demonstrated significant traction, having placed approximately 1,200 M&A projects in 2023 and 1,400 in 2024, with plans to market over 2,000 in 2025. Initially bootstrapped, DealCircle has secured multiple rounds of financing to fuel its growth and technological development. In June 2024, it received a seven-figure revenue-based financing from Round2 Capital to enhance its tech stack, particularly its AI and machine learning capabilities. This was followed by a financing round of approximately €5 million in June 2025, led by InnoVentureFonds and joined by Hanse Ventures and other industry experts, with the capital intended for strategic acquisitions to bolster its technology.

Keywords: M&A platform, deal sourcing, buyer identification, financial technology, private equity, corporate finance, sell-side advisory, deal matching, investment tool, company succession