Alexander Alexander

Alexander Duffy, Director of Corporate Finance at Menzies joined the team in 2018. Prior to his appointment, he held managerial roles at RBS and RSM UK, founded Gold Lion Consulting, and was an Associate Director at Waypoint Partners. 

“I was drawn to Menzies because it really believes in the mantra of Brighter Thinking - improving outcomes and helping SMEs to succeed, regardless of the challenges they are facing.” 

With a broad range of banking and finance already under his belt prior to his arrival, Duffy considers that he brings a relatively fresh approach to his role. 

“I have a range of finance experience in both the ‘growth curve’ and the ‘decline curve’. At the very beginning, a company is looking for seed funding and then Series A and B rounds to grow. At the peak of the company's growth, when they get crowded with market competition, if they don't do anything to perpetuate that growth, they begin to decline.” 

The results of this failure to maintain momentum can be disastrous, ranging from declining sales, internal restructuring, corporate recovery, or even insolvency. Duffy knows the fundamentals at each end of a business’ potential trajectory or ‘bell curve’ and can provide the advice necessary to retain a stable position.

“Keeping the momentum going, even during tough times, is paramount. However, it’s a mistake to keep operating like nothing has changed. In the past, tech-led companies have struggled to compete with those in other high-profile sectors, such as property, retail or travel. But the pandemic has reversed this relationship as physical spaces lost value while digital markets such as DaaS (Data as a Service), video streaming services and ecommerce platforms saw market demand soar. 

“Digital tech businesses aren’t constrained by the physical - an attribute which has become all the more advantageous during the pandemic and in the immediate aftermath of Brexit. These businesses tend not to be exposed to the borders or tariffs of physical trade; software-as-a-service (SaaS) doesn't operate within borders per se, so integrating with these relatively Covid and ‘Brexit-proof’ industries is essential.” 

Read the full article HERE