M&A Intermediaries & Referral Partners
A finance partner for the intermediaries who run the sale
You run the process. We get your client’s numbers ready for it. Everest supports the M&A intermediaries, investment bankers and advisors who take closely held companies to market, ideally before the formal process begins.
The Managing Directors who lead this work have sat in the CFO seat on the sell side. We’ve built the quality of earnings, run the data room and answered a buyer’s diligence questions. When we work alongside you, your client shows up with numbers that hold up, and the deal spends less time stuck in diligence.
Who we work with
M&A intermediaries and business brokers who need a seller’s financials ready before they go to market.
Investment bankers who need a finance lead on the client side through diligence and close.
CPAs, attorneys and wealth advisors who see a sale coming before anyone else and want the client prepared.
What we do for your client
Quality of earnings and projections. We prepare quality of earnings reporting and projections that hold up when the buyer’s team runs its own.
Financial preparedness. We validate and normalize the financials to GAAP and find the red flags early, so buyers trust what they’re reading.
EBITDA and cash flow. We work the cost structure, working capital and cash conversion to raise EBITDA before the business goes to market.
Valuation risk. We address the issues that compress value: customer concentration, pricing, revenue mix and contract terms.
Diligence and data room. We build the data room and answer the finance questions, so the process keeps moving.
Deal structuring. We model scenarios and valuation impacts and work alongside legal and tax advisors to protect the seller’s net proceeds.
An interim CFO, if the seat is empty. Many sellers have a bookkeeper and no CFO. We can place one for the length of the process.
Proof
A $15M custom manufacturer preparing for sale was told by private equity buyers that its financials would not hold up in diligence. We restated two and a half years of financial statements, working through revenue recognition, inventory valuation, spare parts accounting and warranty liabilities. We stayed on as CFO through the monthly close so the new policies carried forward. When the buyers came back, we answered their diligence teams directly, and the business got to a close on clean books.
Across the team, Everest has closed more than 50 M&A transactions, buy side and sell side, with combined transaction value of more than $55 billion. See M&A & Transaction Support.
When to bring us in
Before the engagement letter is ideal. Your client is a year or more from market and the books aren’t buyer-ready. The CFO seat is empty or held by a controller. A buyer’s quality of earnings team is about to arrive. Or a letter of intent is signed and diligence has already turned up questions the seller can’t answer.
If a client isn’t ready to go to market yet, our Exit Readiness Assessment shows the owner where the gaps are and what to fix first. See Prepare to Sell / Exit Readiness.
Questions intermediaries ask
Do you run sale processes?
The intermediary or banker runs the process, and we work alongside you. We do the finance work on the client side and support you through close.
When is the best time to involve Everest?
Before the formal process starts. Early involvement gives us time to fix what a buyer would otherwise discount.
Can you help after a letter of intent is signed?
Yes. We can step in during diligence to answer finance questions and rebuild the numbers a buyer is questioning.
Who engages Everest?
Your client engages us directly, and we keep you informed on timing and findings.
Let's talk
If you have a client who is close to market and the numbers aren’t ready, let’s talk. We’ve sat in your seat. Now we’re in your corner.
