Billy completed his first buy-out in 1995 and since then has been actively involved in many leveraged buyouts, working closely with private equity investors and high net worth individuals. He joined E.J. Stiell as an apprentice in 1976, led a management buyout in 1995 and over the next 7 years transformed Stiell into the leading independent UK facilities management company.

Following the successful sale of Stiell to Alfred McAlpine, Billy became part of a buy-in team at ASCO, the Aberdeen based oil and gas logistics business. Against a background of credit crunch, recession and fluctuating oil prices, he delivered strong growth at ASCO, building an international group of companies through a series of acquisitions, before achieving a successful exit in 2011.

In parallel, Billy worked alongside fellow Aliter founders, Greig Brown, Andrew Busby and Andy Galloway, as part of the buy-in team at Europa Support Services. He was Chairman there between 2006 and 2013, when the business was sold to Bilfinger Berger.
Over the twenty years prior to the launch of Aliter in 2017, Billy was also involved in a number of smaller investments across a range of markets, normally as chairman and co-investor.