LRQA Group

LRQA Group Limited
FormerlyLloyd's Register Quality Assurance
IndustryRisk management, Certification and inspection
Founded1985; 41 years ago (1985)
Headquarters
Birmingham
,
England
Key peopleIan Spaulding (CEO)
Revenue£483 million (2025, pro forma)
Number of employees
3,500+ (2025)
Websitewww.lrqa.com

LRQA Group Limited is a British risk management and assurance company headquartered in Birmingham, England. The company was founded in 1985 as Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance, a subsidiary of Lloyd's Register. Lloyd's Register sold the business to funds managed by Goldman Sachs Alternatives in 2021.

History

Lloyd's Register of Shipping established Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance in 1985 to assess the quality management systems of other organizations, and the subsidiary went on to certify companies against the ISO 9000 standards. It was incorporated in England on 21 January 1985. Roderick MacLeod, chairman and chief executive of Lloyd's Register from 1983 to 1993, was credited in his obituary with pioneering the venture. A 2002 doctoral study of the British quality consultancy market identified LRQA and BSI Quality Assurance as the assessors that registered most medium and large manufacturers in the early waves of ISO 9000 certification.

By 2021, the business operated as Lloyd's Register's Business Assurance & Inspection Services division, which also included the cyber security company Nettitude.

In April 2022, LRQA acquired ELEVATE, a Hong Kong-based supply chain sustainability and risk management firm, from EQT Private Equity. During 2025 and 2026, it acquired RESET Carbon, Core Business Solutions, EcoEngineers, and Partner Africa. As of March 2026, funds managed by Goldman Sachs Alternatives held an 83% equity stake in LRQA, with management holding the remaining 17%. In June 2026, Hillhouse Investment acquired a minority stake in the company from Goldman Sachs Alternatives.

Operations

LRQA operated in about 150 countries. In 2025, assessment and certification accounted for 52% of revenue and inspection for 28%; pro forma revenue for the year was £483 million, and the company had more than 3,500 employees.

LRQA also acts as a conformity assessment body for the Marine Stewardship Council's fisheries certification. In early 2026, its draft assessment recommended recertifying the Antarctic krill fishery operated by Aker QRILL for five years, a recommendation that the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition and WWF opposed and that the coalition formally challenged.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Research Update: U.K.-Based Assurance And Inspection Service Provider Dione Topco (LRQA) Assigned Preliminary 'B' Rating; Outlook Stable". S&P Global. 2 March 2026. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  2. 1 2 Opper, Susanna (1996), Lloyd, Peter; Whitehead, Roger (eds.), "Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance: Quality Management Begins at Home", Transforming Organisations Through Groupware: Lotus Notes in Action, London: Springer, pp. 131–137, doi:10.1007/978-1-4471-3052-9_16, ISBN 978-1-4471-3052-9, retrieved 2026-10-20{{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link)
  3. 1 2 Saul, Jonathan (2021-06-29). "Britain's LR to focus on shipping with sale of division to Goldman Sachs arm". Reuters. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  4. 1 2 Wiggins, Kaye; Louch, Will (29 August 2023). "Goldman Sachs bought UK and US companies using Chinese state funds". Financial Times. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  5. ↑ "LRQA Limited (company number 01879370)". Companies House. Retrieved 20 October 2026.
  6. ↑ Kelly, Juan (3 February 1993). "Obituary: Sir Roderick MacLeod". The Independent. Retrieved 20 October 2026.
  7. ↑ Murphy, R. P. (2002). Client perceived value in quality consultancy relationships (PDF) (PhD thesis). University of Birmingham. p. 54.
  8. ↑ Segal, Mark (2022-01-26). "Goldman Sachs-Backed LRQA Acquires Supply Chain Sustainability Solutions Provider ELEVATE". ESG Today. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  9. ↑ "LRQA to Acquire ELEVATE in Effort to Meet ESG Reporting Demands". Corporate Compliance Insights. 2022-01-26. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  10. ↑ "Goldman Sachs-backed LRQA Acquires Supply Chain Carbon Management Solutions RESET Carbon". ESG News. 2025-01-29. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  11. ↑ "LRQA Acquires Supply Chain Carbon Management Solutions Provider RESET Carbon". ESG Today. 2025-01-22. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  12. ↑ Battersby, Mark (2025-02-12). "LRQA acquires US-based provider of advisory service, software". International Adviser. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  13. ↑ Bolivar, Rod (2025-06-06). "LRQA acquires five global risk specialists". Insurance Business. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  14. ↑ Beech, Adam (2025-03-20). "Goldman Sachs Alternatives-backed LRQA snaps up 120-strong US firm - fifth deal in as many months - Insider Media". Insider Media. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  15. ↑ Fisher, Kenny (2026-04-16). "Goldman Sachs-Backed LRQA Acquires Responsible Sourcing Advisory Partner Africa". ESG Today. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  16. ↑ Baigorri, Manuel; Gopinath, Swetha (June 5, 2026). "Hillhouse Nears Stake Purchase in Goldman-Backed LRQA". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 2026-10-20.
  17. ↑ McVeigh, Karen (4 March 2026). "World's largest krill harvester at centre of row over 'blue tick' sustainability label". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 October 2026.