Key changes to Capital Gains Tax, Inheritance Tax and Business Reliefs from the 2024 Autumn Statement
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Its more than just a strap-line, it's in our DNA for how we approach each stage of the deal cycle in our own way and tailor that uniquely to the circumstances of each seller and buyer
“Understanding” not “Selling” is critical to adding value
Through our core business, Independence Capital, we interact with sellers and advisors on a daily basis. It's our experience that most commonly, sellers are unfamiliar with the process, unclear and sometimes misguided on what to expect (in terms of value, structure and process) and their advisors have very little knowledge of the actual business and the industry – the only thing they are effective at selling is their own services. For this reason we actually prefer to go direct to business owners and avoid “On-market” deals where an advisor is actually hindering rather than enabling progress.
As owners and operators of businesses ourselves, it's a non-negotiable fundamental of our Exit Process that we invest the time from the outset to properly and thoroughly understand your business and its industry. In our experience, time and cost saved here only results in delays, disruption and disappointment later in the deal cycle.
It takes two to tango...
so we help both sides!
Any successful deal requires an agreement between a buyer and a seller but 99% of the sell-side advisory market is focused solely on the seller and running a very standardised process whatever the client, whatever the circumstances and entirely irrespective of the buyer
We shape our process to not only help educate, direct and support business owners, but critically to also make the process as easy, informative and supportive for a buyer who ordinarily sees the M&A process as inherently slow, uncertain & expensive.
Five ways we add value by respecting the buyer
Research their trading circumstances - what has been legacy trading, what are the resources available to the company, how does their trading and M&A activity compare with that of their peers?
Research the key individuals who make the decisions - what have they done in the past, how big is their team, what goals are they chasing?
Research their deal process - what deals have they done in the past, how have they gone since, what feedback can we get from vendors, what advisors have they used, what funders have they used and what does this tell us about what they will need to see in order to move from offer to close?
How does our deal fit into their agenda - rather than leave this to the buyer, we give them the information they need in the format they need it to be able to manage their stakeholders internally with minimal further re-work
Our process is aimed to minimise the friction and uncertainty felt by a prospective buyer and maximise the insight, transparency and control we give them. It's no surprise that with this combination we continue to receive exceptional feedback from buyers and sellers alike.
We can build a plan to suit
all circumstances & timelines
Corporate Finance M&A advice covers a very broad range of circumstances and scopes. At Independence Exits, we pride ourselves on being an alternative to the cookie-cutter approach of the national brokers, who just want to list your business. Instead we invest significant time in developing often a range of workstreams to best facilitate the ambitions of the business owner.
Long-range growth strategy
Work with shareholders to build a plan for maximising exit within a 5yr time horizon
Off-market exit
Work with shareholders to provide a discrete and targeted exit to a highly profiled cohort of potential buyers, maximising privacy
Partial exit
Working with shareholders to effect a partial disposal of their shares such that they materially de-risk ahead of a future full exit event
Valuation
Providing for shareholders an illustration of both valuation of their shares and what key factors most influence the determination of value in any future event
GAP Analysis - Exit Readiness
Working with shareholders to understand the extent to which they are ready for the process of exit and what remediating actions can be undertaken to facilitate best future exit
Medium-range
Work with shareholders to build a plan for maximising exit within a 2yr time horizon
Accretive exit
Work with shareholders to undertake acquisition of a company which helps enhance the exit of the enlarged group shortly afterwards
Invested exit
Working with shareholders to achieve minority investment into their business and in doing so unlock a greater future exit event with the support of seasoned professional investors
Valuation Roadmap
Working with shareholders to map actions over time which bridge an existing valuation to an aspirational target
Benchmarking
Providing shareholders with clear comparison of their company against direct and indirect peers of present and past. Identifying for shareholders areas of strength, weakness, opportunity and threat
Accelerated exit
Work with shareholders to execute on a plan for maximising exit within 3-months, focusing in surety of deliverability
Succession exit
Work with shareholders and management to design and execute a transfer of shares to management looking to support continuity of trade whilst providing market value to shareholders
Carve-out exit
Working with corporate shareholders and (or) subsidiary or divisional management to affect an exit of the part of the group to either management, trade or private equity
Inbound filter
Qualifying for shareholders all inbound acquisition interest such that the credibility and extent of interest is clearly established before any management time is required, minimising distraction
Sector research
Providing shareholders with clear and concise reporting regarding either a sector or business model - set against either expected future trading outcomes or detailing the frequency, texture and composition of M&A activity
Distressed exit
Work with shareholders and (or) insolvency partners to execute on a plan for maximising exit without worsening an insolvent trading position
Tax efficiency exit
Working with shareholders to deliver an exit where tax outcome is a primary objective - reducing Capital Gains potentially to 0%
Exit Options Review
Working with shareholders, investors, bankers & management to illustrate the various routes to exit available to them and what decisions can be made within each route which might influence a future exit event, include running multiple processes simultaneously
Buyer Analysis
Working with shareholders to review, often multi-channel, the likely range of future buyers for their shares. Profiling the buyers financial and operational circumstances & modus operandi such that current best and potential future best buyers can be identified
Overseas research
Providing shareholders with analysis of overseas direct and indirect trading peers, along with commentary regarding the M&A texture prevailing in that geography
Leading with innovation
In 2024 we released to market our own SaaS technology, Cloudd. Having spent decades operating with the same tools and processes used universally across the market, we saw an opportunity to reduce friction, increase transparency and improve efficiency by bringing legacy manual processes built around Excel & Word into the Cloudd. Accessible any time of day, from any device, from any part of the world.
- Create questionnaires online
- No more back and forth emails
- All answers online, with 24/7 asynchronous access
