Lumina Interview with Dubai Eye Business Breakfast

Our Partner, Andrew Nichol, shared his views on what is driving the M&A market, how to influence successful outcomes and latest valuations on the Dubai Eye 103.8 Business Breakfast. Click here to listen to the interview.

Key themes:

• The most successful M&A transactions are set up to succeed through careful planning and preparation

• Sellers recognise:

  • What their equity story is and how the business will continue to grow post deal

  • The value of potential synergies, how they will be achieved and then measured post transaction

  • How this plays into investor’s needs and what their focus areas will be

  • Identifies and mitigates risks early – bringing transparency to the process

• Buyers recognise:

  • The need for focussed due diligence on what really impacts the equity story of the Company

  • Valuations have moved from a pre-revenue to post-profit model, with investors increasingly focusing on profitability

  • How profitability is then converted to cash

Deals are closing (reference Fine / Nai Arabia) and we are also seeing increasingly innovative M&A structures such as Management Buyouts, often combining upfront consideration with vendor loan notes sharing upsides between seller and buyer.