Most founders who have been through a failed or heavily discounted transaction will tell you the same thing: the legal issues that surfaced in due diligence were not surprises to them. They knew the employment contracts were informal. They knew the IP assignment was incomplete. They knew the shareholder agreement had gaps. They just did […]
What Kills a Deal in Due Diligence Has Usually Been Building for Years Read More »
Private equity and venture capital transactions in South Africa move through a predictable sequence: investment thesis, preliminary commercial assessment, indicative terms, and then due diligence. It is in due diligence that deals most often stall, reprice, or collapse – and the findings that cause this are, with notable regularity, things that were knowable before the
The Legal Due Diligence Findings That Derail South African PE and VC Deals Most Often Read More »
Most South African business owners who have been through a failed or heavily discounted sale process can point to the moment things went wrong. It is almost never the commercial terms. It is the due diligence findings that nobody anticipated – and that nobody had fixed, because no one had looked. Here are the five
Most founders begin preparing for a sale at the wrong moment. The LOI is signed, the buyer’s advisors are engaged, and suddenly every gap in the business becomes a negotiating point – because the buyer now controls the clock and every issue discovered after LOI is leverage they didn’t have before. The founders who achieve
The Pre-LOI Window: What to Fix Before Buyers Start Asking Questions Read More »
Founders preparing for an exit tend to focus on the same thing: valuation. What the business is worth, what multiple is achievable, what comparable transactions look like. But the founders who consistently achieve the valuations they believe their businesses deserve understand something that takes most people one deal to learn. Buyers don’t just pay for
The Clarity Premium: Why Some Founders Get Full Price and Others Don’t Read More »
Founders often assume the exit process is about one thing: valuation. But buyers rarely discount because they dislike the product or the market. They discount when they can’t see the business clearly enough to trust what they’re buying – and when they find surprises mid-diligence, they don’t just adjust the price. They slow down, add
The Deal Gets Discounted When Buyers Can’t See the Business Clearly Read More »
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Ask our AI a question about this topic, and one of our specialist lawyers will review the response and email you within 24 hours, free of charge.
KAI is free for Caveat friends and clients. To use KAI, complete the form below and look out for the AI’s answer, reviewed by a specialist lawyer, in your inbox. For the most accurate and helpful response, be as specific and detailed as possible. Provide all relevant facts and clearly state what you’d like answered.
Disclaimer: Kai is provided by Caveat in a bona fide attempt to make legal services more accessible to you. Caveat will not be liable for any damage, loss or expense arising from the use of this offering.
Feedback Welcome: Your experience matters to us. Please share feedback on this offering at info@caveatlegal.com to help us improve its efficacy.
