Houlihan Lokey has agreed to acquire a controlling interest in Audere Partners, a French corporate finance firm operating under the Natixis Partners brand. The deal will add more than 50 finance professionals to the firm’s Paris office, boosting the total headcount in France to approximately 80. Audere Partners’ senior leadership—Patrick Maurel, Boris Picchiottino, François Rivalland, Nicolas Segretain, Bruno Stern and Ludovic Tron—will join Houlihan Lokey, bringing deep relationships with financial sponsors, family-owned businesses and entrepreneurs. This transaction positions Houlihan Lokey as one of the premier mid-cap advisory platforms in France and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2026, after which Audere Partners will be fully integrated under the Houlihan Lokey brand.

Houlihan Lokey has acquired the real estate capital advisory business of Mellum Capital, expanding its presence in Munich and London. Founded in 2021 as a spin-out from Brookfield Financial, Mellum Capital’s team of 11 professionals—including founding partners Heinrich Hauss and Markus Reule—has joined as Managing Directors in the Capital Solutions Group. The acquisition enhances Houlihan Lokey’s ability to advise on equity investments, debt placements, structured finance and liability management across the real estate sector. The real estate brokerage subsidiary, Mellum Real Estate GmbH, remains under its original ownership and is excluded from the deal.

These two transactions bring Houlihan Lokey’s EMEA headcount to roughly 550 professionals, marking significant progress since the firm’s expansion efforts began a decade ago. According to CEO Scott Adelson, the combined expertise and cultural alignment of the new teams will enable the firm to deliver differentiated solutions across the capital structure. Phil Adams, President of Houlihan Lokey Europe, noted that France represents a core growth market and that the addition of the real estate advisory team in Germany and the U.K. broadens the firm’s sector coverage. Investors should view these deals as strategic moves to capture rising advisory fee pools in mid-cap M&A and real estate financing across Europe.