CohnReznick set to cut PE deal

CohnReznick is likely to become the latest large US accounting firm to sell a majority stake in itself to private equity, according to the Wall Street Journal. Insiders told the Journal that CohnReznick, the nation’s 16 largest accounting firm by revenue, is in advanced talks with British PE firm Apax Partners. The deal “could be announced in the coming weeks,” the newspaper reported.

CohnReznick, a New York-based audit and consulting firm, had revenue of more than $1 billion in 2023 and would be valued at around $2 billion.

Apax is a newcomer to the accounting world, but CohnReznick won’t be its first foray: After years of keeping an eye on the accounting and advisory field, it bought the professional services branch of UK firm Evelyn Partners in November 2024.

Crumpets, scones, and…private equity? 🇬🇧 Though it may seem unusual for a UK fund to buy a US firm, it’s actually a new manifestation of a trend that’s happening on both sides of the pond. British accounting firms are also looking to PE for capital.

In 2022, for instance, regional UK firm Cooper Parry became what the Times called an “early adopter” of PE by selling a majority stake to Dutch fund Waterland Private Equity. (Then, like some of its American counterparts, it went on an “acquisition spree,” the Times noted.) In June 2023, PAI Partners invested in Azets Group, Great Britain’s eighth-largest firm; that same year, Waterland bought a majority stake in top-ten UK firm Moore Kingston Smith; and in November 2024, Cinven made a “strategic investment” in Grant Thornton UK, Britain’s sixth-largest auditor.