Mergers and Acquisitions

We evaluate potential targets or merger partners as well as financial and strategic alternatives. We advise on strategy, timing, structure, financing, pricing, and we assist in negotiating and closing transactions.

We advise on sales and auctions in both strategic and distressed situations. We may also advise on financial and strategic alternatives to a sale, such as recapitalizations, spin-offs, carve-outs, split-offs or tracking stocks.

We help clients realize value from corporate assets, with innovative strategies for optimizing business portfolios. We advise on all aspects of execution, seeking success for the original company, for newly independent companies, and for shareholders.

We help our clients to identify the best possible opportunities for acquisitions, disposals or strategic partnerships. We tailor the best strategy and timing in order to achieve the best possible results.

Investing time in understanding our client’s needs is fundamental to the way we work, and we always take a long-term view. This is clearly demonstrated by our relationships that span decades, and our significant repeat business.

In advising companies on an acquisition, merger, or sale, we evaluate potential targets, provide valuation analyses, and evaluate and propose financial and strategic alternatives. We provide boards and management teams with independent judgment and deep expertise as they navigate their most important transactions and strategic decisions. We also advise as to the timing, structure, financing, and pricing of a proposed transaction as well as assist in negotiating and closing the deal.

Agora Partners bring seasoned experience to your team, enabling your firm to maximize your chances of a successful acquisition-led growth strategy through:
  • Detailed industry analysis and benchmarking to identify and rank the best opportunities and the best timing.
  • It begins with a deep understanding of the market, the strategy and the value proposition of our client. This creates the foundation for attractively positioning clients to potential strategic and financial partners.
  • Next, we develop a highly customized tactical plan for introducing clients to the market
  • Working with senior management to secure buy-ins to a realistic, fact-based integration plan
  • Work as a partner with client at every stage of transaction process
  • Leading negotiations with targets to ensure a smooth transition from term sheet to completed transaction

We have an extensive track record advising clients on purchase transactions. Our experience enables us to help you identify appropriate targets, perform an effective valuation analysis, structure an offer, and conduct skilful negotiations leading to a successful close.

With deep experience in logistic services, warehousing, metals & mining, manufacturing, hospitals and healthcare systems, we focus on providing a wide range of tailored creative financial solutions.

Agora Partners provides exceptional sell-side advice to both private and public firms seeking to sell their company or divest assets/business segments with senior level resources and personalized attention dedicated to each transaction.

Agora Partners advises clients on sell-side transactions and divestitures. Our professionals work together with the senior management team to execute the sale with minimum disruptions to the operations. In each sale process we:
  • Prepare a confidential offering memorandum
  • Develop detailed financial model covering key aspects of business
  • Develop a pipeline of potential strategic and financial buyers
  • Oversee data room preparation
  • Handholding in due diligence process
  • Develop a general strategy for accomplishing the transaction, including the structure, conditions, and financial terms
  • Lead the negotiations with each prospective buyer
  • Perform general due diligence on the prospective buyer
  • Execute the transaction, including coordinating outside legal, accounting, and tax advisers as necessary

Capital Raising

Capital fuels growth and provides flexibility. Agora Partner's relationships with private equity, venture capital, and lending organizations enable us to identify the right capital partner and carefully tailored offerings structures to support your company's growth objectives, acquisition-related financings, recapitalizations, and shareholder restructurings. We actively seek engagements to place senior debt (minimum $ 7 million), mezzanine finance (minimum $5 million), equity (minimum $5 million) and private equity partnership funds (no set minimum), as well as entire balance sheet restructuring assignments.

  • Equity placement
  • Preparation of pitch books, investor documents
  • Private placement
  • Debt syndication, Project finance & allied services
  • Work as a partner with client at every stage of transaction process

Agora Partners is a leader in structuring and executing private market transactions for our public and private corporate clients who require direct private equity, credit, or hybrid financing solutions.

Our dedicated Private Placements Advisory Team has extensive experience executing complex transactions to address the objectives of our clients, including:
  • Growth capital
  • Venture capital
  • Private “secondary” sales of equity stakes / shareholder replacements
  • Acquisition-related private equity or debt financing
  • Equity recapitalizations
  • Formation capital
  • Other situations requiring creative private capital financing solutions

Agora Partners differentiated relationships with a global network of investor decision makers enables us to connect our clients with “traditional” investors such as private equity funds, mutual funds, hedge funds, and alternative lenders as well as with an extensive network of “non-traditional” capital partners such as large family offices, global pension funds and endowments, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, and strategic investors.

Agora Partners comprehensive private placements product suite includes:
  • Traditional and pre-IPO equity private placements for private companies
  • Private convertible and hybrid securities
  • Private “secondary” sales of equity stakes / shareholder replacements
  • Private Investments in Public Entities (“PIPEs”) for public companies

We help our clients to raise capital, carry out refinancings, issue debentures, and access alternative and structured finance solutions that optimize terms and minimize risk.

Agora Partners provides debt solutions tailored to a client's specific capital needs. Our seasoned investment bankers provide tactical consultation, determining optimal debt capital structures and accessing the markets to meet client objectives. Through our extensive experience and relationships with investors, Agora Partners has developed a proven track record of helping financial companies raise debt capital.

Our team have detailed knowledge and insight across the debt markets including corporate debt, leveraged finance, structured finance, real estate finance and capital markets.

Debt capital include:
  • Corporate debt offerings
  • Bridge financing
  • Non-convertible debentures
  • Acquisition Financing & Staple Financing
  • Foreign currency loans
  • Senior and subordinated structured private debt
  • debt refinancings
Uniquely suited to raise capital for any situation
  • We have experience raising capital for clients across the entire capital spectrum
  • We have deep, long-standing relationships with potential lenders and investors, and we add value by providing access to a broad array of capital providers that are uniquely tailored to the situation
  • Terms and structure can be tailored to navigate market conditions and achieve client objectives

Valuations

Although Agora Partners performs a valuation as part of every one of its M&A and financing assignments; however also does valuation work on a stand-alone basis resulting in a more formal report. Most all of the business valuation assignments undertaken by Agora Partners are based upon a “going concern” assumption. Agora Partners does, however, value financial assets, including both marketable and illiquid investments.

Agora Partners provide valuation opinion based on a thorough, in-depth analysis using valuation methodologies appropriate for the sector, company and its market.

Valuing businesses require understanding and analysis of a variety of complex factors including detailed technical knowledge of value drivers and in-depth industry knowledge.

We offer complete and objective valuation services to meet client specific needs and specialize in the identification and valuation of intangible assets. Our team has wide experience with goodwill impairment and purchase price allocations across various industries, such as financial and professional services, technology, media and communications, manufacturing, logistics, natural resources, healthcare, hospitality, and E-commerce.

The firm does also provide formal “fairness letters”, statutory & regulatory compliance purpose and below is a list of some of the different purposes for a valuation assignment:
  • Business valuation
  • Intangible asset valuation
  • Tangible asset advisory services
  • Portfolio valuation for private equity funds
  • Valuations for dispute resolution/court/company law board matter/Income tax/RBI
  • Valuations relating to specific products (ESOPs) or industries
  • Fair Valuation for Financial Reporting: Given the difficulty of valuing illiquid assets and the potential for conflicts of interest, our clients rely on us for independent third-party valuation services. Our practice is deeply rooted in fair valuation of illiquid assets on behalf of hundreds of hedge funds, private equity firms, financial institutions, corporations, other investment managers and investors.
  • Allocation of purchase price and goodwill to reporting units (cash generating units).
  • Valuation of contingent assets and liabilities.
  • Derivative Valuation and Share-Based Compensation: Our quantitative finance professionals specialize in developing customized models and deriving supportable inputs for these valuations.

    Our services include:

    • Derivatives Valuation
    • Valuations for Equity Awards and Share-Based Compensation

    Experience with the full range of equity valuation techniques, including:

    • Monte Carlo simulation analysis which captures path dependency and correlation
    • Binomial lattice models, customized to capture key features such as early exercise behavior
    • Closed form solutions such as the Black-Scholes formula
    • Default and recovery rate modelling
  • Machinery & Equipment Valuation: We offers experience, reliability and transparency in the valuation of machinery and equipment for virtually every industry.
  • Land & Bulding Valuation

Restructuring

We provide comprehensive financial restructuring and capital structure advice in connection with stressed and distressed situations, including amendments, debt exchanges, financings, distressed M&A, and balance sheet recapitalizations.

Unlike most other firms, our professionals combine an extensive knowledge of restructuring strategies with M&A expertise, credit analysis skills, capital markets knowledge, industry expertise and negotiation experience in distressed situations.

Our expertise includes helping to negotiate with creditors or on behalf of creditor committees, restructuring existing debt and pursuing multi-track execution strategies which aggressively and decisively resolve financial challenges.

We help our clients to strategize and execute complex restructuring plans such as balance sheet recapitalizations and restructurings, to enable their businesses to reset their financial footing and to exploit future growth opportunities. We specialize in providing critical and unbiased advice to clients on complex balance sheet issues and transformational situations. Our team is uniquely positioned to ensure clients receive holistic advice across the full spectrum of potential alternatives. Our team is distinguished by its track record of developing and implementing innovative solutions that forge consensus among diverse stakeholders, maximize value and minimize execution risk.

We have advised on the largest and most complex restructuring situations with:
  • Challenging stakeholder negotiations
  • Obtaining covenant waivers and amendments
  • Developing, negotiating, and executing resolution plans during IBC restructurings
  • Raising new debt and equity capital for complex and/or highly leveraged situations
  • Designing and implementing financing-driven recapitalizations
  • Buying or selling non-core assets or entire companies in a distressed context

Strategic Advisory

Agora Partners Strategic Advisory business provides differentiated strategic and tactical advice as well as unparalleled execution to both public and private companies across a broad range of industry sectors and geographies.

We help our clients identify and pursue strategic priorities, devise strategies to enhance shareholder value, and develop new ideas and deeper perspective to achieve their goals.

We advise boards and management teams on how to successfully develop relationships with and communicate their strategies and M&A transactions to their shareholders.

Our success begins and ends with an unrelenting commitment to delivering world-class strategic and financial advice and client service.

Agora Partners provides integrated advice in connection with the structuring of public and private transactions – including mergers, spin-offs, sales, joint ventures, and capital markets offerings – intended to optimize tax, accounting, and other objectives of the deal. Our team is led by the former head of the tax practice at a major law firm with over 35 years of experience in transactional work. We work closely with our clients and their legal and tax/accounting advisors to deliver the optimal structuring solutions.

Similarly, most middle market companies do not have their own, full-time Corporate Development departments as in many larger corporations. Corporate Development is a critical function for companies seeking external growth through mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Acquisitions often provide the fastest and most efficient means for companies to enter new products and markets, expand geographically (domestically and internationally), obtain new technologies, capture new customers, and achieve economies of scale.

Benchmarking is a process to compare the financial and operating metrics of your company to the industry as a whole. For example, how does your company’s gross margin compare to the average gross margin of companies in your industry?

A better metric than that of the industry as a whole could indicate that your firm is worth more than the average firm in your industry. During the sales process you might want to call out:

Benchmarking can give you an idea of what the optimum inventory level is for your industry. It may be possible to reduce inventory and pocket some cash ahead of a sale. If you don’t, you can be sure the buyer will do it right after the sale closes.

If you have a company with over $10 million in revenue, and you’d like us to perform a custom benchmarking exercise for free, email us and a representative will be in contact with you.

It has been seen in many cases that private equity/Venture funds lost the value of their investments due to certain factors like adverse market conditions, management non-performance as per the business plan, mismanagement by various stake holders, inadequate system and process designs, controls/checks etc.

Agora Partners Investment Management businesses comprise a set of companies, each highly-focused and attuned to serve the specific needs of their respective clients with customized investment advice and management expertise. This ensures that private equity/venture funds maintain their entrepreneurial focus and that their business interests remain aligned with the short-term and long-term objectives.

AGORA Partners provides advisory services to solve business challenges by Big Data Analytics, Marketing Analytics (Both Digital & Offline Marketing), Web Analytics, Fraud Analytics, Predictive Analytics, Customer Analytics and end-to-end process development for different analytical projects in E-commerce, Retail, FMCG & Pharma sectors. At Agora Partners we have experienced industry professionals and technology experts work in tandem to deliver unique insights and analytics that drive innovation. We help enterprises sharpen their business strategy by complimenting human intellect with innovative usage of big data, thus providing competitive agility and building a data analytics-driven organization.

Marketing Analytics - We help clients by performing following data driven analytics
  • Market Segmentation - Segmentation, Sizing, Etc.
  • Product / Customer Segmentation & Profiling
  • RFM Analysis
  • Purchase Likelihood Analysis
  • Cross-sell/Up-sell Analysis
  • Customer Lifetime Value (Loyalty) Analysis
  • Offer Optimization
  • Churn / Retention Analysis
  • Marketing Mix Modelling
Risk Analytics
  • Predictive Modelling of Claims Frequency and Severity
  • Credit Scoring Analysis
  • Fraud Detection and Prediction
  • Foreclosure Prediction
  • Rating Structures
  • Loss Ratio Analysis
  • Risk Based Pricing
  • Value at Risk Modelling
  • Collection and Recovery Modelling
Supply-Chain Analytics
  • Trend Plotting
  • Demand / Manpower Forecasting
  • Location Allocation Decision
  • Inventory Management
  • Sourcing or Procurement Analysis
  • Stock Replenishment Analysis
  • Due Date Quoting
  • Logistics and Distribution Analysis
  • Vendor Management Inventory Systems
  • Vehicle Routing Problems