Numerous tributes to Nigel Doughty, who died suddenly on Saturday (4 February) aged just 54, have been surfacing from the worlds of finance and sport.
The founder of private equity firm Doughty Hanson was also the financial saviour of Nottingham Forest football club. Doughty was hugely influential position in the private equity arena having been responsible for some of the most high-profile buyout deals of the past two decades, including the acquisition of Swiss watchmaker Tag Heuer in 1995, the purchase of the giant food manufacturer Rank Hovis McDougall in 2000 and Vue cinemas in 2010.
Working at Standard Chartered in the 1980s,
Doughty met Richard Hanson in the 1980s while the pair were putting together Standard & Chartered’s European management buyout unit. The pair broke away to establish Doughty Hanson in 1995.
A succession of successful buyout and flotation deals followed as Doughty Hanson become one of Europe’s largest venture capital groups and private equity fund managers. The firm has invested around €23bn across more than 100 investments.
The firm also avoids using large leverage in their buyouts and can also boast to have largely improved the financial positions of the firms it purchased.
Labour-supporting Doughty was said to have been happy to pay more tax on his estimated £130m fortune.
Doughty Hanson issued a statement that read: “On behalf of Dick Hanson, and all the management and staff of Doughty Hanson, we are tremendously sorry to learn of the death of Nigel Doughty at home this afternoon. Our thoughts are very much with his family at this time.”
NottinghamForest was said to have been a club Doughty invested in for love, not profit. He is estimated to have put around £100m of his money into the club since saving it from administration in 1999.
Such is the high regard for Doughty at the club, former Forest striker Stan Collymore tweeted: ‘Nottingham Forest owner Nigel Doughty has sadly passed away today. Condolences to his family and friends i’m sure from everyone at at #nffc’
Golfer Lee Westwood tweeted: ‘Terrible news to hear that the Forest chairman Nigel Doughty has died.’
England cricketer Stuart Broad – a Forest fan – tweeted: ‘Very sad Nigel Doughty has died. Lovely man and did a huge amount for Forest. RIP’
Labour leader Ed Miliband described Doughty as a “kind and generous man with a deep desire to make the world a better place.”
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