INVESTING IN AND SUPPORTING SEARCH FUND ENTREPRENEURS
We are search fund investors dedicated to investing in and supporting the best and brightest entrepreneurs striving to acquire and lead growth companies.
Respectful Responsiveness
We know every day in the search is valuable, and we commit to respond to you in a timely fashion.
Real-Time, Actionable Feedback
It is our intention to provide valuable, actionable insights to the searcher.
Objective, Data-Driven Analysis
We have carried the ‘searcher briefcase’ before and know what it’s like to navigate the highs and lows of the search fund life cycle.
Searcher Testimonials
“The ETA Equity team has been a remarkable search partner. The team is very responsive and helps you to analyze deals even during the pre-LOI phase. With ETA Equity, you have a partner that is thoughtful, intelligent, and extremely experienced in search and business operations.”
Jameel Francis,
Managing Partner
Malvern Capital Group, LLC
“Matt and Mark have been excellent partners. As former searchers, they have been able to draw from their experience to support my success as a searcher. They are responsive and always offer valuable insight, and overall they are great to work with.”
Jackie Kopcho, Managing Partner
Big Branch Capital, LLC
Meet Our Team
Matthew Zucker, Co-Founder
Matt’s career has spanned multiple fields including technology, management consulting, family offices, and private equity. He has led many transactions, as large as $250 million, and successfully raised capital for multiple investment opportunities. Matt has actively invested in search funds and their acquisitions since 2008. Prior to ETA Equity, he was an investor in 17 search funds which returned a 38% IRR and 4.8x MOIC.
Matt has volunteered as a high school basketball coach for over 10 years and recently helped lead the Yavneh Academy of Dallas to a Texas State Basketball Championship, the first state championship ever won by a Jewish high school.
Matt is an MBA graduate in Entrepreneurial Management from the Wharton School of Business, and he holds a BBA in Management Information Systems from The University of Texas at Austin.
Mark Sinatra, Co-Founder
Prior to ETA Equity, Mark was CEO of Staff One HR (acquired via Mark’s search fund) where he led the company through a period of substantial growth highlighted by achieving the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies for four years in a row, and culminating in Staff One HR’s sale to its largest privately-held competitor, Oasis Outsourcing, in December 2017. Mark oversaw the Western half of the country for Oasis Outsourcing until its sale to Paychex for $1.3 billion in December 2018. Prior to his leadership experience in the HR industry, Mark worked as a consultant and investment banker.
Mark has published several articles and has spoken on numerous occasions across various media outlets, including Knowledge at Wharton, Sirius XM Business Radio, Inc. Magazine, Forbes, CBS Radio, and Dallas Business Journal.
Mark is an MBA graduate of the Wharton School of Business, and holds a BA in Economics from Fordham University. He has earned the SHRM-CP designation, is a Certified Predictive Index analyst, and is a graduate of the Stagen Integral Leadership Academy. Mark has been an active member of YPO since 2014.
Jay I. “Bud” Applebaum, Senior Advisor
Bud is a Partner with Wingate Partners. He joined the firm in 1989 and has been involved in well over 50 acquisitions. Wingate has been investing in manufacturing, distribution, and services businesses across a wide variety of industries.
Ravi P. Dattani, Senior Advisor
Ravi is President of Schiavi and Dattani, Delaware’s first fee-only and fiduciary-based wealth management firm. Ravi has extensive experience in financial planning, investment research, tax planning, real estate, financial technology, and operations.
*Mr. Dattani’s involvement with ETA Equity is strictly in a fiduciary capacity for clients of Schiavi and Dattani Financial Advisors. He receives no compensation as an advisor to ETA.
Rick Lacher, Senior Advisor
Mr. Lacher is a Managing Director in Houlihan Lokey’s Mergers & Acquisitions Group. He also serves as Co-Head of the firm’s M&A Committee and Co-Head of the Board and Special Committee Advisory practice.
Giovanni Gallo, Advisor
Giovanni’s career has spanned working in innovative startups and advising multinational companies on strategic growth initiatives. While guiding growth-oriented healthcare providers, he realized that a strategically oriented and properly executed compliance function can be a key driver of quality and help organizations achieve their mission.
Current Investments*
Search Funds
Companies
Past Investments*
Search Funds
Companies
*The above represents a selective list of current and prior investments that the principals of ETA Equity have invested in on behalf of ETA Equity, as individuals, or on behalf of prior unaffiliated entities.