Company lists · Data refreshed September 2026

Top 25 Merchant banks based in Chicago, United States

Name: Merchant banks based in Chicago, United States
Creator: RevenueBase
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Compiled by the RevenueBase Data Team Data refreshed Sep 17, 2026 98 companies tracked

RevenueBase identified 98 merchant banks headquartered in Chicago, United States as of September 2026 and tracks 7,499 professional contacts across them, including 3,827 with verified work emails. New York is the largest hub.

This list covers merchant banks headquartered in Chicago, United States, matched on what each company actually does as described in its own words. Ranked by team size, largest first. Every row shows the company's own description, its RevenueBase Smart Search rating, and when it was last checked. Data refreshed September 17, 2026.

Published by RevenueBase, a B2B data infrastructure company. This list was built with RevenueBase Smart Search, the natural-language company search RevenueBase customers use to build their own targeted lists and unlock verified emails and direct dials at the companies on them. How these lists are built and judged.

How to read this list HQ checked on every row RevenueBase Smart Search rating on every row Refreshed Sep 17, 2026 86% judged on-target in blind review

98Companies

7,499Contacts tracked

3,827Verified emails

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The 25 largest merchant banks based in Chicago, United States

Ranked by team size

Top 25 of 98 merchant banks based in Chicago, United States, ranked by team size, largest first. Data refreshed Sep 17, 2026. RevenueBase Smart Search rates how each company's information relates to merchant banks: strong evidence (its own description names it), partial (names part of it), indirect (matched on the rest of its profile rather than the description shown). Click a contact count to view that company's people.
#	Company	RevenueBase Smart Search	Headquarters	Employees	Contacts
1	William Blair	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	1,001-5,000	2,324 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “William Blair is the premier global partnership with expertise in investment banking, investment management, private wealth management, institutional sales and trading, and equity…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
2	Lincoln International	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	1,001-5,000	1,489 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Lincoln International, Inc.(NYSE: LCLN) is a trusted investment banking advisor to business owners and senior executives of leading private equity firms and their portfolio…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
3	Mesirow	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	501-1,000	783 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Mesirow is an independent, employee-owned financial services firm founded in 1937.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
4	BDT & MSD Partners	Partial evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	201-500	504 contacts →
	Partial evidence “BDT & MSD Partners is a merchant bank serving founders, family business owners, and long-term strategic investors.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
5	Ziegler	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	51-200	435 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Ziegler is a privately held investment bank, capital markets and proprietary investments firm.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
6	Loop Capital	Indirect evidence	Chicago, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	201-500	275 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Loop Capital is a full-service investment bank, brokerage and advisory firm that provides creative capital solutions for corporate, governmental, and institutional entities across…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
7	Livingstone	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	51-200	207 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Livingstone is an international mid-market M&A and debt advisory firm with offices in Amsterdam, Beijing, Chicago, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, London, Los Angeles, Madrid…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
8	Portage Point Partners	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	201-500	173 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Portage Point is a business advisory, interim management and investment banking firm intensely focused on the middle market.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
9	Cabrera Capital Markets	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	51-200	118 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Founded in 2001, Cabrera Capital Markets LLC is the leading Latino-owned investment bank and institutional brokerage firm providing investment banking for municipal, corporate…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
10	CDI Global M&a	Indirect evidence	Chicago, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	51-200	118 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “CDI Global, established in 1973, is a leader in middle-market, cross-border transactions with over transactions to our credit.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
11	Arete Wealth	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	69 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Arete Wealth is a diversified financial services firm with more than $6.8B in assets under management.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
12	Pmcf Investment Banking	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	69 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “PMCF is a middle market investment bank that provides merger and acquisitions advisory services to individual and family-owned businesses, large public companies, and private…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
13	The Peakstone Group	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	58 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Peakstone is the trusted partner and leading force in the lower middle market U.S.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
14	Houlihan Capital	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	53 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Houlihan Capital is a leading, solutions-driven valuation, financial advisory and investment banking firm committed to delivering superior client value and thought leadership in…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
15	XMS Capital Partners	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	39 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “XMS Capital Partners, LLC (“XMS”) was launched in August, 2006 with the goal of creating a different kind of investment banking boutique, a place where relationships are paramount…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
16	CMD Global Partners	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	24 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “CMD Global Partners is an international boutique investment banking firm offering a vast set of capabilities to a broad range of publicly-traded and privately-owned companies…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
17	City Capital Advisors	Partial evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	22 contacts →
	Partial evidence “City Capital Advisors, a FINRA registered broker-dealer, is a results oriented investment and merchant banking advisory firm.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
18	Helios Healthcare Advisors	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	22 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Helios Healthcare Advisors is an independent corporate advisory firm that provides strategic and financial advice on mergers & acquisitions, recapitalizations, and private…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
19	Auctus Capital Partners	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	17 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Auctus Capital Partners is a leading financial services and investment banking firm focused exclusively on creating value for the lower middle market.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
20	Verit Advisors	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	15 contacts →
	Indirect evidence Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
21	The Chicago Corporation	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	15 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “After 15 successful years, The Chicago Corporation (TCC) will be winding down operations at year end 2024.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
22	Hummer Mower Associates	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	1-10	12 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “HMA is founded on the principles of sound advice and excellent service.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
23	Ravinia Capital LLC	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	12 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Ravinia Capital LLC is a Chicago-based boutique investment bank providing M&A and capital investment banking services to middle-market companies with revenues from $25 million to…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
24	Davis Capital, LLC	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	12 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Davis Capital is a transaction driven firm and focuses on creating, initiating, negotiating, structuring, and closing mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, management buyouts…” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026
25	Metronome Partners LLC	Indirect evidence	Chicago, IL, United StatesHQ checked Sep 17, 2026	11-50	11 contacts →
	Indirect evidence “Metronome Partners is an independent, M&A advisory firm that specializes in sell-side transactions as well as capital raising across a broad range of industries.” Source: RevenueBase Database · checked Sep 17, 2026

RevenueBase Smart Search

RevenueBase Smart Search assesses information from a company’s LinkedIn profile, information supplied directly by the company, its website, and other publicly available sources. It uses that information to rate how closely the company relates to this list’s category: merchant banks. Every row carries its rating and the description the rating was read from, so each one can be checked rather than taken on trust.

Strong evidence: The company's own public description of its business names merchant banks.
Partial evidence: Its own public description names part of merchant banks, so it works in or next to the category without describing itself that way.
Indirect evidence: The description shown does not name merchant banks. The match rests on the rest of the company's public profile rather than the one sentence quoted here, so this is the rating to check first.

RevenueBase Smart Search is how these lists are built: RevenueBase's data engine and AI assemble the companies that match a category defined in a user's own words, so a list can be about what companies actually do rather than about whichever industry code they were filed under.

Showing 25 of 98 merchant banks based in Chicago, United States

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Merchant banks based in Chicago, United States at a glance

As of Sep 17, 2026

51.0%Verified-email coverage

76.5Average contacts per company

11-50Median size (employees)

485.7%Largest-city concentration · New York

Sep 17, 2026Page data refreshed

Companies by employee count

1-10

11-50

51-200

201-500

501-1,000

1,001-5,000

5,001-10,000

Email recency for this list is measured across the whole United States list rather than for Chicago, so it is reported there. Company counts and contact totals on this page are exact for Chicago, over 98 companies.

How this list was built

Company categories are rarely black and white. RevenueBase reads each company's own description of its business to decide whether it belongs among merchant banks, so some rows will be adjacent to the category rather than pure plays. The description and RevenueBase Smart Search rating on every row are there so you can check each match yourself.

Source: The RevenueBase company graph: 60 million companies and 398.9 million professional contacts resolved from primary sources, queried with RevenueBase Smart Search, the natural-language company search available to every RevenueBase user.
What qualifies: Companies headquartered in Chicago, United States whose own description of what they do matches “merchant banks”. Matching reads each company's description, not its industry code or its name.
RevenueBase Smart Search: RevenueBase Smart Search is how this list is assembled and how each row is rated. RevenueBase's data engine and AI assess a company's LinkedIn profile, information supplied directly by the company, its website and other publicly available information, then relate it to a category defined in a user's own words. Each row is rated strong evidence (its own description names merchant banks), partial evidence (it names part of the category) or indirect evidence (the description shown names none of it and the match rests on the rest of the company's profile). The description supporting each rating is quoted on the row.
What we exclude: Companies whose own description does not clearly place them among merchant banks, and records with no verified work email. Companies headquartered outside Chicago are excluded even when they keep an office there.
Match quality: In blind human judging of this matching method, 86% of matched companies were on target. Expect roughly 1 in 7 rows to be adjacent to the category rather than a pure play. Every row shows the company's own description and its RevenueBase Smart Search rating so you can judge each match yourself. Read the full methodology: how the lists are built, how the judging worked, and what the figure means.
Ranking: Team size, largest first: companies are ordered by the number of professionals RevenueBase tracks at each one. Employee ranges shown are reported bands, for context.
Verification: Every listed company carries at least one verified work email, 3,827 across the full list. Contacts re-verify on a rolling cadence, and each contact's own verification date is shown inside RevenueBase.
Refresh: This page's figures were pulled from the company graph on September 17, 2026. Lists refresh periodically as the graph is re-checked.
Corrections: Wrong category, wrong headquarters, or a company that has closed? Use “Report an issue” on any row. Reports go to the RevenueBase Data Team and feed back into the company graph.

Merchant banks by metro in the United States

Frequently asked

What is RevenueBase Smart Search?

RevenueBase Smart Search is how RevenueBase decides which companies belong on this list and how strongly each one fits. Its data engine and AI assess a company's LinkedIn profile, information supplied directly by the company, its website and other publicly available information, then relate it to the category the list is about. Each row is rated strong evidence when the company's own description names merchant banks, partial evidence when it names part of the category, and indirect evidence when the description shown names none of it and the match rests on the rest of the company's profile.

How many merchant banks are there based in Chicago, United States?

RevenueBase identified 98 merchant banks headquartered in Chicago, United States as of September 2026, matched on each company's own description of what it does rather than its industry code.

What is the largest company on this list?

William Blair, headquartered in Chicago, tops this list with the largest team on record.

Which city has the most merchant banks?

New York leads with 476 headquartered companies, followed by Chicago (98) and Los Angeles (93).

How do I get contact information for these companies?

A free RevenueBase account lets you run this exact search and work the top results, verified emails and direct dials included. Upgrading unlocks all 3,827 verified decision-maker contacts tracked across these 98 companies.

How current is this list?

The list refreshes periodically as the company graph is re-checked. This page's figures were pulled on September 17, 2026.

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About this data

RevenueBase is a B2B data infrastructure company. Its company graph covers 60 million companies and 398.9 million professional contacts, with emails verified on a rolling cadence rather than scraped once and left to decay. These company lists are generated directly from that graph with RevenueBase Smart Search, the same natural-language company search every RevenueBase user has: describe a market in plain words, get the companies that match, and add verified emails and direct dials for the people at them. It is the same data that powers RevenueBase's B2B data products, and a free account includes 500 credits to start. How these lists are built and judged.