When I was 15, I looked up to Allen Iverson and anyone with a mean crossover. At 32 I now look up to anyone who’s built a mean data company. Anand Sanwal is on that shortlist, scaling CB Insights into a bootstrapped juggernaut. I’ve long been a fan of his informational, and witty, newsletters (approaching 1 million subs). So I was pumped to finally get to interview him on a topic he and CBI track maybe better than anyone: Mergers and Acquisitions.
Please enjoy this crash course on the dark arts of M&A with a data legend, Anand Sanwal.
What I thought M&A was before this interview
TL;DR:
Part I: M&A Basics
Types of buyers: Strategics vs Financial Sponsors
The most common reasons for M&A
How deals get valued
The average size of an M&A deal
M&A in economic cycles
Part II: M&A in Real Life
How to identify M&A targets
What’s the deal with all the big take privates lately?
Who usually will pay the most for a deal?
Part III: Sectors and Verticals
Are M&A and IPO activity inversely correlated?
Which sector is the most active in terms of buying other companies?
Sectors that may pick up the pace (keep an eye out!)
Part IV: Lightening Round
A message he’d put on a billboard
Advice he’d give his 25 year old self
Subscribe to our premium content to read the rest.
Become a paying subscriber to get access to this post and other subscriber-only content.
UpgradeYour subscription unlocks:
- In-depth “how to” playbooks trusted by the most successful CFOs in the world
- Exclusive access to our private company financial benchmarks
- Support a writer sharing +30,000 hours of on-the-job insights
