Mr Hodgson, who previously launched Deliveroo in Scotland and led global operations at Houst (formerly Airsorted), has secured an initial investment of £380,000 for Tinto Hill.

The fund has up to £50 million available for acquisition purposes. The financial backing comes from an international group of specialist investors.

Unlike traditional private equity models, search funds like Tinto Hill have a unique approach to business acquisition. In this case, Mr Hodgson will personally oversee the day-to-day operations of the acquired business, providing a structured succession plan for retiring business owners. Search funds have gained global prominence since originating at Stanford University in 1984, largely owing to their impressive average internal rate of return (IRR) of 33.3%.

Tinto Hill is open to investing in a variety of sectors, from Energy Transition Services to SaaS. The key criteria for acquisition include an EBITDA between £1m and £5m, a fair enterprise valuation of up to £50m, high-quality recurring cash flows, a strong existing management team, EBITDA margins greater than 15%, and potential for growth.

Tinto Hill director, Mr Hodgson, said: “Launching Scotland’s first-ever Search Fund is a hugely exciting project.”

“Scotland has a proud and extensive history of financial innovation and there is nowhere more appropriate to launch this new fund than in my home town.”

“Tinto Hill has secured funding to acquire a business with a value up to £50m, and the hunt is now on to find a firm that meets our requirements.”

“Scotland has a hugely diverse and vibrant business landscape, and Tinto Hill will look across all sectors and industries before making the right investment.”