Main Street To Mid-Street Acquisition & Financing News

Expert insights, funding strategies, and practical guidance for securing capital, financing growth, and navigating business acquisitions. Whether you're raising capital for expansion, restructuring debt, or exploring your first acquisition, our blog provides the knowledge and resources to help you succeed.

Growth
October 31, 2025

Tax Traps in Equity Rollovers to Avoid

Equity rollovers can defer taxes, but missteps—like tying vesting to employment (triggering §83 ordinary income), taking taxable “boot,” or sloppy earnout terms—can create immediate tax bills. Use the right structures (e.g., §351 for corporations, §721 for partnerships), mind reorg limits and elections (including timely §83(b)), and paper the deal precisely to preserve deferral. Bottom line: model after-tax outcomes up front and involve tax counsel to avoid surprises.

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Growth
October 31, 2025

Ultimate Guide to Buying Niche SaaS Businesses

Buying niche SaaS businesses offers investors access to highly specialized markets with sticky customer bases and reliable recurring revenue. These companies often command premium valuations—averaging around 4.7x revenue in private deals—due to defensible positioning and scalability with low marginal costs. Success depends on analyzing key metrics like MRR, churn rate, and LTV:CAC ratios, along with securing smart financing through SBA loans, seller notes, or hybrid deal structures that align with the SaaS model’s predictable cash flow.

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Growth
October 29, 2025

Ultimate Guide to Working Capital in M&A Deals

Working capital in M&A—current assets (excluding cash) minus current liabilities (excluding debt)—is set on a cash-free, debt-free basis to ensure the buyer gets enough liquidity to run the business post-close. Getting the target right (normalized for seasonality and one-offs) is critical because the purchase price adjusts dollar-for-dollar in the 30–90 day true-up if actual NWC differs. Clear definitions of inclusions/exclusions (A/R, inventory, prepaids vs. cash, short-term debt, related-party items) and tight documentation minimize disputes.

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Growth
October 29, 2025

New SBA Rules: Impact on Competitive Landscape

The 2025 SBA rule changes are reshaping the competitive landscape by tightening credit, collateral, and ownership requirements, effectively raising the bar for borrowers and dealmakers. While these updates enhance program integrity and reduce risk for lenders, they also limit flexibility in deal structuring and narrow access to capital. As financing becomes more selective, platforms like Clearly Acquired give buyers and brokers a competitive edge by streamlining compliance, connecting users to over 500 lenders, and leveraging AI tools to structure deals that meet new regulatory standards.

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Growth
October 28, 2025

Huntington Bancshares to acquire Cadence Bank in $7.4 billion deal

Huntington Bancshares announced a $7.4 billion all-stock acquisition of Cadence Bank, a move that will expand its footprint across 21 states and make it one of the top 10 U.S. banks by assets. The combined entity will control $276 billion in assets and $220 billion in deposits, giving Huntington a dominant position in high-growth Southern markets such as Texas, where it will rank among the top deposit holders in Dallas and Houston. The deal reflects broader regional bank consolidation trends, aiming to achieve scale, streamline costs, and strengthen Huntington’s position in commercial lending, small business banking, and wealth management.

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Growth
October 28, 2025

5 Deferred Payment Structures for SMB Acquisitions

ChatGPT said: Deferred payment structures are increasingly used in small and medium-sized business (SMB) acquisitions to bridge valuation gaps and make deals more attainable. By spreading payments over time—through tools like installment plans, seller notes, earnouts, escrow holdbacks, or rollover equity—buyers can manage cash flow while sellers preserve the opportunity for full or even greater value realization. Each method carries unique benefits, risks, and tax implications, so structuring them carefully ensures both parties stay aligned and protected throughout the transaction.

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Growth
October 27, 2025

Scenario Analysis for M&A Revenue Projections

Scenario analysis models base, upside, and downside cases to show how customer retention, pricing, and synergy realization could swing post-deal revenue—then applies probability weights to turn those paths into an expected forecast. That clarity helps buyers and sellers price risk (e.g., with earnouts or price adjustments), align on fair value, and plan contingencies for integration or market shocks. It’s especially valuable in Main Street and lower mid-market deals where data is sparse and a few variables drive most of the outcome.

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Growth
October 27, 2025

Forensic Accounting in M&A Fraud Detection

Forensic accounting plays a vital role in uncovering hidden fraud during mergers and acquisitions (M&A). By combining investigative techniques with advanced tools such as AI-powered data analysis and digital forensics, forensic accountants can detect issues like inflated EBITDA, concealed liabilities, and vendor fraud that traditional due diligence might overlook. These insights protect buyers from overpaying, ensure accurate valuations, and safeguard deal integrity.

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Growth
October 26, 2025

Ultimate Guide to Operational Metrics in M&A

Operational metrics make or break M&A: with 70–90% of deals missing targets due to integration gaps, tracking the real drivers—customer retention, employee productivity, process efficiency—exposes risks that financials alone hide. These KPIs shape valuation (e.g., scalability, capacity utilization) and guide post-close execution to hit typical synergy goals like 10–15% cost savings within 18 months. Using AI-enabled benchmarking and dashboards to monitor productivity, system adoption, financial performance, and capacity turns due diligence insights into an integration plan you can actually manage.

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Growth
October 24, 2025

Ultimate Guide to Onboarding and Retention in M&A

Employee integration, not financials, is often where M&A deals succeed or fail. A well-executed onboarding and retention plan—built around a centralized Integration Management Office (IMO), leadership involvement, and continuous employee feedback—can preserve key talent and culture.

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Growth
October 22, 2025

Ultimate Guide to Earnouts in SMB Acquisitions

Earnouts are increasingly used in SMB acquisitions to bridge valuation gaps between buyers and sellers by tying a portion of the purchase price to the company’s future performance. They align both parties’ interests by balancing risk and reward—buyers reduce upfront exposure while sellers have the opportunity to earn more if the business performs well. However, success depends on clearly defined performance metrics, timelines, and payment structures to minimize disputes and ensure transparency throughout the earnout period.

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Growth
October 21, 2025

Salesforce Enhances Process Automation with Apromore Acquisition

Salesforce’s acquisition of Apromore strengthens its position in process automation by integrating advanced process intelligence and analytics capabilities into its platform. This move empowers small businesses to gain end-to-end visibility into their operations, identify inefficiencies, and automate repetitive tasks to boost productivity. With Apromore’s tools for process mining, simulation, and optimization, Salesforce is paving the way for a new era of intelligent, agentic automation tailored for growing enterprises.

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Acquire Quality. Fund Growth. Close with Confidence.

As an AI-driven Business Acquisition Marketplace and Financing Platform, we are on a mission to simplify and accelerate the MainStreet to MidStreet lending and acquisition ecosystem.

We specialize in technology that supports price discovery, identity verification and financial qualification, and buy-side tools to help searchers source and manage deal flow, make offers, secure lending/financing solutions, and close with confidence.

illustration of team with digital platform

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some frequently asked questions by users that are looking to buy businesses on Clearly Acquired:

How can I show business owners I'm a legitimate buyer and that I'm interested?

With a Clearly Verified account, you can instill confidence in other users, brokers and sellers that you are, who you say you are, when you "verify" your identify.  This is the key to instilling confidence in the users on the platform,  gaining traction and getting instant access to financials, supporting data and insight to quickly move to making an offer or moving on.   This will save you months of wasted time and expedite the closing of a sale.

How are my finances verified?

Using financial technology the Clearly Acquired Platform safely and securely verifies your finances, to help sellers understand your closing capability and help lenders expedite your financing. Additionally, the buy-side deal room will help you get your documentation in order, to prepare you for the debt and equity financing you will need to close your acquisition.

Can I get in touch with advisors to help support me in this process?

The Clearly Acquired team is here to support you on your business acquisition or business sale journey. That said, the platform is designed to connect you with a community of users, who are identify verified, which include: investors, lenders, advisors, brokers, consultants, and other buyers who are looking for partners.  

What is a Deal Hub?

The Deal Hub is the central repository for all transaction-related activities on our business acquisition platform. It serves as a secure and organized space where buyers and sellers can access critical information and manage the entire acquisition process efficiently. The Deal Hub is divided into two main components: the Data Room and the Deal Rooms.

Data Room: The Data Room is a secure, virtual storage space where sellers can upload and share essential documents related to their business. This includes financial statements, legal contracts, operational reports, and other due diligence materials. Buyers can access these documents to conduct thorough evaluations and make informed decisions. The Data Room ensures that all sensitive information is protected and only accessible to authorized parties.

Deal Rooms: The Deal Rooms are dedicated spaces for each business listing where buyers and sellers can collaborate and negotiate terms. Each Deal Room is equipped with tools for real-time communication, document sharing, and tracking the progress of the deal. This streamlined environment facilitates transparent and efficient interactions, helping to expedite the acquisition process and ensuring that both parties are aligned at every stage.

The Deal Hub's comprehensive and secure infrastructure simplifies the complexities of business acquisitions, providing a seamless experience for all users involved.

What is Plaid?

Plaid is a financial technology company that provides a secure and seamless way to connect and interact with financial institutions. It enables applications to access users' financial data with their consent, facilitating a wide range of services such as identity verification, account authentication, and transaction history retrieval. Plaid's robust API infrastructure ensures high security, reliability, and compliance with regulatory standards.

By integrating Plaid, Clearly Acquired can offer a secure, efficient, and reliable method for identity verification, building trust among users and ensuring the integrity of the acquisition process.

I am new to the idea of business acquisition, where can I get more information on how to get started?

Make sure to check out our Educational Course on Business Acquisition that is offered in our paid plans for buyers: From Purchase to Profit: Mastering the Art of Business Acquisition.

This Membership Course for buyers is designed to empower individuals with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to navigate the business acquisition process successfully. Whether you're a first-time buyer or an experienced entrepreneur, our course equips you with the tools and insights needed to make informed decisions and achieve your acquisition goals. Join us and embark on your journey to buying a business with Clearly Acquired.

Easy as 1, 2, 3

Create Your Account. Get Verified. Start Searching.

1

Create an account

Every day, lenders, investors, brokers, and sellers come to Clearly Acquired looking for qualified operators like you. Creating an account and getting verified helps you stand out and build trust.

2

Build your profile

Build your profile to get matched with capital and opportunities. Showcase your expertise and resume, to connect with the right capital and acquisition partners—making every opportunity count.

3

Search & Connect

Browse Verified listings, source off-market deals, & manage deal flow with powerful tools to underwrite opportunities, and connect with capital to streamline the entire acquisition and funding process

Join the Clearly Acquired Search Community

Create Your Profile & Get Verified for Free