Search Funded: The ETA Podcast

David Khalil, Partner and CFO at saas.group, joins Search Funded to discuss the changing economics of SaaS. 
We talk about the collapse of SaaS exceptionalism, the shift away from ARR multiples, why GAAP profitability matters again, how stock-based compensation distorts earnings, and how saas.group acquires and operates profitable product-led software businesses for the long term.  
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In this episode of Search Funded, I speak with Michael Johns, Managing Director of Ascentro Capital Partners, a New Zealand-based private investment firm focused on buying, building, and growing businesses across New Zealand and Australia.
Michael shares the story of leaving the corporate and finance world to build Ascentro from the ground up, and why that transition was far more humbling than he expected. He explains what it took to raise capital deal by deal, why walking away from bad deals helped build trust with investors, and how putting meaningful personal capital into each transaction shaped the firm’s approach.
We also discuss what makes the New Zealand and Australian lower-middle-market different from the U.S. Michael explains why competition is thinner, why public information on private companies is scarcer, and why good businesses in New Zealand may trade for 4–6x EBITDA compared to much higher multiples in the U.S. At the same time, he is clear that the lower entry multiples are not “free,” because operators still need to attract strong management teams, professionalize the business, and execute effectively after closing.
A major theme of the conversation is people. Michael talks about the importance of hiring high-quality CEOs and management teams, why he is willing to pay above market for exceptional talent, and why diligence needs to go beyond the founder or CEO to understand the real culture and bench strength of a business. He also shares lessons from deals that did not go as planned, including the importance of spending more time with the second layer of management before closing.
We also explore New Zealand’s “tall poppy syndrome” and how it affects entrepreneurship, ambition, and the way successful founders are perceived. Michael reflects on why New Zealanders often under-celebrate business success and why he wants to help normalize ownership, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy for the next generation.
Finally, Michael explains why he sees generative AI as a major opportunity in smaller markets like New Zealand. Because many traditional business owners are older and slower to adopt new technology, Ascentro is focused on using AI across sales, operations, finance, reporting, and compliance to create an operating advantage. He also discusses Ascentro’s long-term ownership philosophy, its approach to platform building and integration, and the appeal of New Zealand as a private capital market in a more uncertain geopolitical world.
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In this episode we are joined by Alexander Kelm, founder of ETA Europe and writer of Buyout Diary, to explore why entrepreneurship through acquisition in Europe requires a very different playbook from the one most searchers know in the United States.
Alexander shares his journey from finance and startups into ETA, why he chose independence over the traditional search fund model, and how his MBA research on governance, founder knowledge transfer, and post-acquisition operations shaped his thinking around buying and owning small businesses.
They discuss:
 Why the U.S. ETA model doesn’t cleanly translate to Europe 
 The importance of language, culture, and local trust in European acquisitions 
 How seller financing and government-backed loans differ from SBA financing 
 Why relationship-building matters more in European dealmaking 
 The growing ETA ecosystem across Amsterdam, Brussels, Spain, and beyond 
 How family offices in Europe are slowly waking up to ETA 
 Cross-border investing opportunities between the U.S. and Europe 
 Why Alexander chose a self-funded path instead of a traditional search fund 
The conversation also dives into a broader theme that often gets overlooked in ETA: how to design an acquisition path that fits the kind of life you actually want to live, not just the one that looks best on paper.
Whether you’re interested in international ETA, self-funded acquisition entrepreneurship, or the future of small business succession outside the U.S., this episode offers a rare on-the-ground look at one of the fastest-growing ETA ecosystems in the world.
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Sally Tian shares her journey from consulting, tech, and Harvard Business School to building one of the first search funds in China alongside her husband and co-founder. She explains why she walked away from the “immigrant dream” and chose a more uncertain but aligned path in entrepreneurship. 
We discuss what it actually takes to do search in China, including how fundraising differs across international and local investors, why credibility matters more than the model itself, and how relationship-driven dynamics shape sourcing and dealmaking. Sally also highlights key cultural differences, from how sellers perceive young operators to why traditional search fund narratives don’t translate directly. 
Throughout the conversation, she reflects on identity, returning to China, and how her background across cultures has shaped her approach to building and operating a business in a market where there is no clear playbook. 
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Most private equity returns over the last decade were not driven by operators. They were driven by cheap debt and multiple expansion. That playbook is breaking.
In this episode, Lee McCabe, partner at Claymore Partners, explains what actually drives value creation now and why most lower middle market businesses are far less prepared than they think. At Claymore, Lee works directly with private equity firms and their portfolio companies to drive value creation across marketing, data, and technology.
Before that, Lee led digital and growth initiatives at companies like eBay, Expedia, Facebook, and Alibaba, giving him a unique perspective on how digital and now AI actually show up inside real businesses, not just pitch decks.
We cover:
 Why most businesses do not actually understand how they make money 
 How KPI laundering and broken data lead to bad decisions 
 Why AI is mostly a distraction for unprepared companies 
 The real value creation playbook: data, systems, marketing, then AI 
 How to think about CAC, conversion, and net profit per lead 
 Why CEOs, not tech, are usually the biggest bottleneck 
 How searchers and independent sponsors should adapt in a post multiple expansion world 
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