M&A BASE backs ex-Mitsubishi trader's search fund for Japanese SME succession
What's the deal? M&A BASEDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a search fund subsidiary of Tokyo-listed Excite HoldingsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, invested in TasukiDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a traditional search fund led by searcher Tomoya Okabe, on August 1, 2026. The money came through the firm's M&A BASE Search Fund No. 1Dealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → vehicle, for which M&A BASEDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → acts as general partner.
What's a search fund? It is a private equity model, born at a US business school in 1984, in which an aspiring manager (the searcher) raises investor backing to find, acquire, and run a small or mid-sized company. The investment funds Okabe's search phase; M&A BASE will support sourcing targets and post-merger integration.
Who is the searcher? Okabe studied agriculture at Kyoto University, then worked at trading house Mitsubishi CorporationDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → on chemical exports and third-country trade, later managing a multinational team in semiconductor materials. He holds an MBA from IESE Business School in Spain and belongs to the Japan Search Fund Association.
What's the endgame? Okabe plans to acquire and grow Japanese SMEs that hold strong technology or products but lack a successor. He is targeting manufacturers in semiconductors and plastics, plus firms with trading functions, seeking businesses with high entry barriers, stable cash flow, and EBITDA of ¥100 million to ¥1 billion nationwide.
"I want to use the overseas sales and business development experience I gained at a trading house to take over and grow Japanese SMEs, and ultimately contribute to the Japanese economy," Okabe said (translated from Japanese).
Why now? Japan faces widespread successor shortages at otherwise healthy small companies, making search funds a fast-growing option for business succession. M&A BASE has already backed two acquisitions: restaurant operator TGKDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, taken over by Yoshihisa Haruyama in November 2024, and wastewater treatment maker Act in Tokushima, taken over by Yuki Ise in April 2025.
The signal: Japan's search fund market remains young, and backers like Excite-owned M&A BASE are positioning to build it out. By funding individually organised traditional search funds rather than only running its own vehicle, the firm is widening the pipeline for a succession model still in its early days locally.
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
