Map out your buyer’s final M&A approval process

Founders often make this mistake in the excitement of signing an LOI:

Neglecting the buyer’s final M&A approval process.

I recently spoke with a founder who signed an LOI with a large strategic buyer.

He thought the transaction close was imminent.

But he overlooked the buyer’s final process post-LOI.

He missed that an M&A committee approval was needed to close the deal.

And that was where everything fell apart.

Key Takeaway

Ask the buyer to map out their entire M&A approval process post-LOI to close.

This is particularly important with larger companies with more stakeholders and complex processes.

Be mindful of any process dependencies (e.g., committees) where you lack relationships.