What Pure Search does

Pure Search is a specialist B2B recruitment firm placing mid-to-senior level professionals across twelve practice areas: Tax, Treasury, Finance and Accounting, Legal, Audit, Actuarial, Risk Management and Quantitative Analytics, Compliance and Financial Crime, Company Secretarial, Digital Transformation, HR, and Marketing/Sales/Communications. It targets enterprise clients — FTSE-listed companies, Am Law 100 firms, global stock exchanges, banks, asset managers, insurers, and private capital firms — through retained, contingency, and interim search engagements delivered by sector-specialist consultants, many of whom trained inside the disciplines they now recruit for (e.g., ex-KPMG tax, ex-Big Four audit, ex-EY/Protiviti). The firm was acquired in 2019 by Logan Naidu and now operates as a brand within Kernel Group, a multi-brand recruitment ecosystem that also owns Dartmouth Partners; Kernel is backed by two rounds of private equity investment (Literacy Capital in 2018 and Three Hills in 2023) and employs approximately 178 people across the UK, US, and Hong Kong.

Pure Search does not operate a proprietary technology platform; its product surface is human-expert-driven recruitment services — search, screening and selection; succession planning and team builds; retained solutions; interim solutions; advisory; and market mapping / industry reports. Revenue is generated through professional-services fees: percentage-based placement fees on permanent and interim engagements, plus retained search fees negotiated on role seniority and complexity. Pricing is bespoke rather than published, and contract cadences stretch across multi-year retained partnerships.

The firm is headquartered at 125 London Wall (EC2Y 5AS), with additional offices at 16 East 34th Street, New York (since 2016); 615 S College St, Charlotte, NC (since 2024); and Level 45, Cheung Kong Center, Hong Kong (since 2008, the oldest and largest international office within Kernel). Legal entities include Dartmouth Partners Limited (UK, primary), Pure Search International Limited (Hong Kong), Dartmouth Partners Inc (US), and Pure Search International Pte Limited (Singapore). The go-to-market is direct, consultative, and relationship-led, with thought-leadership content (Perspectives blog, salary guides, market reports) and referrals from placed candidates and clients as primary demand-generation channels.

Name

Pure Search

Legal name

Dartmouth Partners Limited

Website

https://puresearch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Pure Search is a specialist B2B recruitment firm placing mid-to-senior professionals across tax, legal, finance, risk, compliance, audit, and actuarial sectors for FTSE companies, Am Law 100 firms, and global financial institutions through offices in London, New York, Charlotte, and Hong Kong, operating within Kernel Group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Executive Search and Specialist Recruitment Services

NAICS

Executive Search Services (561312), Employment Placement Agencies and Executive Search Services (56131)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Financial Services Leadership Search (Banking/Insurance/PE/Asset Mgmt) (BPACAAAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

C-Suite & Board Search (BPACAAAA), Confidential/Replacement & Succession Search (BPACAAAK), Functional Leadership Search (HR/Finance/Legal/Marketing/Sales/Ops) (BPACAAAB)

Keywords

• Executive search
• Legal recruitment
• Tax recruitment
• Finance recruitment
• Interim staffing

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Recruitment and Search Services: Pure Search generates revenue through recruitment and executive search services, placing candidates in permanent and interim positions across their specialist sectors. Services include retained search solutions, contingency placement, interim staffing, and advisory services. Fees are typically structured as percentage-based placement fees or retained search engagements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Pure Search is a specialist recruitment agency placing mid-to-senior level professionals across Tax, Treasury, Finance, Legal, Audit, Actuarial, Risk, Compliance, HR, Digital Transformation, and Company Secretarial sectors. The firm delivers retained search, contingency placement, interim staffing, advisory, and market intelligence services to leading global businesses, financial institutions, and law firms. Operations are run from offices in London, New York, Charlotte, and Hong Kong.

Product overview

Pure Search is a specialist recruitment agency operating as part of the Kernel Group. The company offers a unified recruitment service platform focused on professional sectors including Tax, Treasury, Finance, Legal, Audit, Actuarial, Risk Management, Compliance, HR, Digital Transformation, and Company Secretarial. Rather than a modular technology platform, Pure Search provides human expertise-driven recruitment services delivered through multiple service delivery methods: Search/Screening/Selection, Succession Planning and Team Builds, Retained Solutions, Interim Solutions, Advisory Solutions, and Market Mapping and Industry Reports. Their Am Law 100 practice specifically serves US law firms. The company operates across offices in London, New York, Charlotte, and Hong Kong.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tax Recruitment Specialist tax recruitment services placing expert candidates into roles across globally recognised businesses, covering international tax, transactions, and direct tax functions.
• Treasury Recruitment Expert treasury recruitment agency services with over 20 years of network and extensive knowledge of the sector for placing candidates in treasury roles.
• Finance and Accounting Recruitment Connects businesses with finance leaders from CFOs to technical specialists, providing consultative recruitment to ensure strategic insight and financial expertise in placements.
• Legal Recruitment Connects top-tier companies and law firms with exceptional legal talent globally, transforming careers and reshaping businesses through specialist placement.
• Audit Recruitment Places elite audit professionals in top-tier firms across all sectors, ensuring strategic alignment in audit, assurance, and governance roles.
• Actuarial Recruitment Connects leading insurers with experts in pricing, risk, and financial analysis, placing candidates with analytical and technical depth in actuarial roles.
• Risk Management and Quantitative Analytics Recruitment Matches exceptional risk and quantitative analytics professionals, from graduate analysts to high-performing leaders, across financial and non-financial risk roles.
• Compliance and Financial Crime Recruitment Recruits mid to senior professionals across the Compliance sector, from specialists to heads of departments, covering compliance advisory, monitoring, and financial crime roles.
• Company Secretarial Recruitment Delivers Company Secretarial professionals that support strong leadership and sound decision-making for businesses requiring governance expertise.
• Digital Transformation Recruitment Connects organisations with leaders who deliver growth through digital transformation, from strategy and delivery to P&L accountability, identifying talent with vision and technical depth.
• HR Recruitment Builds future-ready HR teams by connecting organisations with leaders who drive transformation across people, culture, and strategy, including C-suite and specialist roles.
• Financial Officers Practice Partners with CFOs and senior finance leaders to appoint high-impact executives across listed, private equity-backed and privately owned businesses, focusing on performance and transformation.
• Retained Search Solutions Ongoing recruitment partnerships providing access to extensive talent networks, expert insights, and advisory support for long-term hiring needs.
• Interim Solutions Agile interim solutions for covering gaps, busy periods, maternity leave, or other short-term hiring needs with access to extensive candidate networks.
• Advisory Solutions Expert guidance and up-to-date industry insights to help clients make informed decisions and develop outstanding teams beyond placement.
• Market Mapping and Industry Reports Precision market navigation through specialised and detailed market mapping and industry reports covering remuneration, hiring trends, salary, and market movements.
• Am Law 100 Legal Recruitment Specialist placement of high-performing associate talent into Am Law 100 firms across the US, focusing on private practice recruitment with a practice-area-led model.

Quantifiable outcome

• Trusted long-term advisor for clients with repeat business partnerships

Named customers4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Kernel Globalparent companyOthersKernel Global is the parent company and multi-brand recruitment ecosystem that Pure Search operates within. Kernel invests globally in high-potential recruitment businesses across sectors and specialisms, providing infrastructure and investment for brand partners including Pure Search.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Selby Jennings: Specialist financial services recruitment firm covering quantitative analytics, risk, compliance, and front-office roles. Highly comparable specialist niche competitor, though with stronger technology/quant focus and broader mid-market coverage than Pure Search.
• Barclay Simpson: Specialist risk, compliance, and internal audit recruitment firm. Direct competitor to Pure Search's Risk & Compliance practice with similar target clients in banks and asset managers, primarily UK/European footprint.
• Russell Reynolds Associates: Global executive search firm with dedicated Financial Services and Legal practices. Overlaps directly with Pure Search in placing senior risk, compliance, finance, and legal leadership at global financial institutions.
• Major, Lindsey & Africa: Specialist legal search firm placing partners, associates, and in-house counsel. Direct competitor to Pure Search's Legal and Am Law 100 practices, with strong US Big Law coverage comparable to Pure's Charlotte and New York offices.
• Spencer Stuart: Premier global executive search firm with deep Financial Services and Legal officer practices. Competes with Pure Search on senior mandates at investment banks, asset managers, and global law firms, with comparable cross-border delivery.
• Heidrick & Struggles: Global executive search firm with a particularly strong Financial Services practice and significant Legal/Compliance coverage. Directly comparable to Pure Search in serving senior leadership mandates for banks, asset managers, and major law firms across the same geographies.
• Odgers Berndtson: International executive search firm with significant Financial Services, Private Capital, and Legal practices. Comparable mid-to-senior mandate focus across UK, US, and APAC, overlapping with Pure Search's geographies and sectors.
• Egon Zehnder: Global executive search firm with strong Financial Services and Board Practice. Directly competes on C-suite and senior leadership searches in financial services and professional services - exactly Pure Search's core market.

Broad incumbents

• Korn Ferry: Large diversified talent advisory and executive search firm covering financial services, legal, and risk leadership. Wider portfolio than Pure Search but overlapping significantly on senior mandates in their core practices.
• Hays plc: Global publicly-listed recruitment firm with banking, legal, and accounting practices. Broader and more generalist than Pure Search, but overlapping on financial services and legal mid-market mandates across the same geographies.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pure Search