Meet the team
Ryan Capital Partners is led by a senior team of trusted advisors with actual operational and transaction experience.
We’ve built and sold businesses, raised capital, and guided founders through strategic inflection points.
Today, we bring that experience to every engagement to help our clients grow, raise, or exit on the best terms possible. Interested in joining us? We welcome application from trusted advisors with REAL sector experience. Get in touch.
Damian Ryan
Founder & Managing Partner
Damian leads RCP with over two decades of dealmaking experience in tech, media, and marketing. Damian was previously head of media and technology M&A for BDO in the UK market and before then was Lead Advisory Partner with Moore Stephens.
Damian serves on the editorial and corporate finance committees at the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investments.
Before “getting into” deal making, Damian was a publisher and launched the first digital agency in the UK and Ireland. He is also author of the highly successful series “Understanding Digital Marketing”, five editions now printed in 13 languages and listed as required reading by over 150 universities in the world including Harvard.
Nigel Paul
Restructuring & Corporate Dev.
Nigel brings deep financial expertise to help businesses manage growth, raise capital, or reset. A chartered accountant and investor, he specialises in financial structuring, stakeholder management, and building investor-ready businesses across technology, media, and professional services.
Previously, Nigel was CEO of Invision Technologies and Finance & Operations Director at OchreSoft Technologies and other tech-based startups. He is CEO of The Loom Holdings Group, coordinating outsourced finance and legal solutions, and founder of Anactive Consultancy advising companies on strategy and development.
Nigel enjoys golf, cricket, motorsport, rugby, guitar, painting, reading, and music.
Barry Flaherty
GTM and Outreach
Barry is a go-to-market strategist and connector, helping founders sharpen positioning, open doors, and accelerate revenue with the right partnerships across EMEA and the US. He focuses on GTM design, alliances, and sales—bringing a practical, deal-oriented approach to capital raises and M&A processes.
Before RCP, Barry spent ~25 years in tech and media leading regional launches and partnerships for software and services businesses. He is VP UK&I/EMEA at Present Technologies, Board Advisor for CloudSeals, and founder of All Good People and Chain Reaction.
Barry has two children and enjoys watching them grow up in an increasingly complex world, and considers it his most important role of all.
Howard Block
Tax & Transaction Services
Howard supports clients with financial structuring, diligence, and tax advisory across growth, funding, and M&A. A trusted advisor to high-growth companies, he blends corporate finance expertise with practical governance insight to keep transactions disciplined, compliant, and value-focused.
Previously, Howard was a Partner at CSI (Chartered Accountants) in Dublin and Director at BJM/Control Solutions International, leading internal audit, risk, and corporate governance. His background spans Big-4 external audit, senior finance roles (including money laundering), and non-exec positions in regulated firms.
Howard is particularly well known for his leadership work in Ireland’s radio sector, is married and has a dog called Moses.
Martin Scovell
Strategic Advisory
Martin advises RCP clients on business transformation, product development, and strategic positioning. As a successful founder and exited CEO, he brings real-world experience to the table — helping leadership teams align strategy, proposition, and execution from digital innovation to global growth and acquisition.
Before RCP, Martin founded and scaled multiple ventures: Evolving Media (a Top-25 UK digital agency) and MatsSoft, a low-code platform recognised by Forrester and featured in Gartner research, which he sold to Netcall plc in 2017, staying on to support integration.
A father and grandfather, Martin is based in The Lake District, UK, and enjoys the arts, the outdoors, real cooking, and most sports.
