May 2014 - In This Issue:
Upcoming Events:

May 7th-9th, 2014, Washington     
 
AICPA CFO Conference 


May 12th - 16th, 2014, Chicago, IL
Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA)Credentialing Program 

May 28th - 30th, 2014, Florida
 
The Rainmaker SuperConference


June 5th - 7th, 2014, Chicago, IL
ABA International Conference 

 

June 17 - June 20, Las Vegas, NV
 
Annual Consultants' Conference

 

July 22nd - 24th, 2014, Chicago, IL

AM&AA Summer Conference 
Licensure Update:
Email your US Senators NOW!!

May through July is always the most productive time for Congress - especially in a mid-term election year - so our best chance for passing S 1923 in this session of Congress will likely be in the next 90 days.

Your US Senators urgently need to hear from YOU that this bill is important to you, and to buyers and sellers of privately held businesses in your state.

 

Email your US Senators NOW!


...And ask them to join:

  • Senator Joe Manchin III (D WV),  
  • Senator David Vitter (R LA),  
  • Senator Saxby Chambliss (R GA),
  • Senator Tom Coburn (R OK),  
  • Senator John Barrasso (R WY),
  • Senator Patrick Toomey (R PA),
  • Senator Tim Scott (R SC),
  • Senator James Inhofe (R OK),
  • Senator Angus King (I ME), and
  • Senator Amy Klobuchar (D MN)... 

...in co-sponsoring S 1923! 

 

Join AM&AA
Why Become a Member of the Alliance of Merger & Acquisition Advisors?
By becoming a member of the AM&AA you will be in great company and will be connected to a valuable network of M&A expert members who act as resources for other members,
  • AM&AA's Listserve - ability to announce and discuss issues among the membership through an email hosting service
  • AM&AA Member LinkedIn Group
  • Registration discounts for both of AM&AA's prestigious events
  • Name listed in the Member Directory on AM&AA's website
  • Access to the NEW COMMUNITIES PORTAL
  • Improves and broadens members' capabilities, knowledge and professional expertise through education, training and member outreach.
  • Provides group buying benefits
Book Review:
Young Money,
by Kevin Roose
Inside the Hidden World of Wall Street's Post-Crash Recruits

At the height of the financial crisis, when investment banks Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, and others were blamed for recklessly destroying the American economy, Kevin Roose posed a question: Why would a recently minted college graduate want to work on Wall Street? Or, to put it another way, would the country's top banks, used to having their pick of Ivy League students, have trouble recruiting new talent following this blow to their reputations?


To find the answer, Roose immersed himself in the world of Wall Street.

http://www.buffalonews.com/life-arts/book-reviews/kevin-rooses-young-money-20140420



Sector Report:
Tech, Media, and TMT to Fuel M&A - Expected to Be Strongest Industries for Deals

According to a recent survey of more than 1,000 merger and acquisition professionals, investors and advisors conducted by KPMG, 44 percent indicated that M&A activity will be highest this year among organizations in the technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT) industries. Among the respondents were 148 TMT executives, with 68 percent anticipating that their company or client will initiate at least one acquisition in 2014. Seventy-three percent of the TMT executives said that their own sectors would have the most M&A activity in 2014. Middle-market deals are expected to be predominant in TMT, with 82 percent of the TMT executives indicating that their acquisitions would be valued at less than $250M.


Read this insightful article in its entirety. 

 

 

Member's Corner
AM&AA Member on the Move

Loeb Term Solutions Welcomes AM&AA Member, Dave Wanders to Team as New Business Development Officer.  

Loeb is pleased to announce the addition of Dave Wanders to the Loeb Term Solutions team as its newest Business Development Officer. He joins Jim Newman, Managing Partner and the rest of the team in focusing on expanding the financial arm's equipment-based lending portfolio. 

"Dave's addition to the team comes at a time of growth for the company," stated Jim Newman, Loeb Term Solutions' Managing Partner. "In just three short years we've grown a considerable portfolio of equipment-based deals funded with significant growth potential in 2014."

 

news release is available online 

2014 AM&AA Summer Conference
Evolve: Capturing Opportunities in Today's Market

 

Join us at the 2014 Alliance of Merger & Acquisition Advisors Summer Conference

 and hear how to make sure your deal is a winner. In this opening workshop, our panel of experts will take attendees through the art of preparation, from pre-transaction legal and tax planning, to performance improvement and finally to maximizing value and preparing for the sale.
 

Stay Tuned!

We're making some big announcements in the coming weeks for the 2014 Summer Conference. On May 7 the full agenda will be online, and in the weeks following we will reveal our speaker line-up.
 

Early Bird rates end June 16, 2014. Make your plans early to join more than 500 dealmakers at the 2014 Summer Conference.

M&A Overview
Are Mergers Back in Fashion?
Europe Leads a Global Revival

After years of holding back as Europe lurched from crisis to crisis, the region's companies are leading a global dealmaking comeback. Western European buyers announced $149B of acquisitions in the first three months of the year, a gain of almost 60 percent over the same period in 2013 and the biggest jump worldwide, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.


Global deal value rose 26 percent in the first quarter.

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-04-03/merger-mania-is-back-europe-leads-global-revival
Middle Market Outlook
Capital Markets Are Fragmenting
What Does it Mean for Dealmakers?
Assume that we define the middle market as deals between $10M and $250M. Assume, also, that we define an intermediary as a banker, broker, or advisor that represented a seller in a transaction. In addition, we limit ourselves to North America (i.e., the United States and Canada). So, how many advisors do you think closed a middle-market deal in 2013?

 

 It's (a lot) more than you think.

  

CM&AA Designation
What We Offer
The "Certified Merger & Acquisition Advisor" (CM&AA) designation serves to maintain the highest recognized standards of professional excellence for middle market corporate financial advisory and transaction services, and to provide a benchmark for professional achievement within that overall body of knowledge
  
Learn more and sign up here for the September 15th - 19th, 2014 OR October 20th - 24th, 2014 Certification Program
PE Perspective:

Fundraising Off to a Strong Start
Q1 Level is Highest Since Recession

Last year's massive private equity selloff has propelled fundraising in the U.S. to its highest first-quarter level since the onset of the economic downturn in 2008. A total of 204 buyout and corporate finance funds, venture capital, mezzanine, secondary, and funds of funds raised $49.73B, according to Dow Jones. The data includes interim and final closes held in the first quarter.


Still a 19-percent decrease from fourth quarter of 2013.

http://blogs.wsj.com/privateequity/2014/04/16/fundraising-is-off-to-strongest-start-since-2008/

Professional Development:
The Rainmaker 20th Annual SuperConference

Join AM&AA Managing Director Mike Nall and Advisory Board Member Chris Blees at The Rainmaker Alliances 20th Annual SuperConference taking place May 28-30 in Disney World, Florida.  Mike and Chris will be presenting a session on Friday, May 30th outlining new client service opportunities for CPAs based on the recent "No Action Letter" (NAL) issued by the SEC that permits anyone, such as a CPA, to receive fees in connection with the sale of a client's company.  Attendees will learn about the practical application of the NAL and what it could mean for their CPA practice.

 

The 20th Annual SuperConference is the leading practice management and niche growth event in the accounting industry.  This year's conference, themed "Elevating Minds. Expanding Networks," will offer specialized educational tracks: practice management, technology, human resources, emerging leaders, auto dealerships, construction/real estate, health care, manufacturing, and nonprofits. Each session offers specific industry insight to help accounting firms grow and become more profitable. Sessions are designed to meet the needs of both current and future firm leadership.

 

All AM&AA members can receive $200 off registration by using discount code "SAVE200" during checkout.

 

Registration: http://www.cvent.com/d/t4qmhc/4W

 

Macroeconomics:
U.S. Economy Gets Some Shine

New claims for jobless benefits hovered near their pre-recession levels this month and manufacturing in the Mid-Atlantic region also accelerated, suggesting an upswing in economic activity after a brutally cold winter. Coming on the heels of fairly bullish data on retail sales and industrial production, the recent reports also hinted job growth may be picking up slightly.


What economists are forecasting.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/17/us-usa-economy-idUSBREA3F0U920140417

 

Career Corner:
The Seven Golden Rules
How to Spend an I-Banking Career at One Firm
 

There's a popular perception in investment banking that to keep earning and keep learning, you need to move jobs every five years or so. Staying put is stagnating, suggest career consultants and recruiters, so expand your skill-set and network by switching companies. But according to investment bankers who have made it to the senior ranks by staying within one firm, there are many reasons for sticking around and clever methods for carving out a successful career without switching companies.


Follow these seven golden rules.

http://news.efinancialcareers.com/uk-en/169639/seven-reasons-working-single-investment-bank-long-time/

Where Have All the Sellers Gone?
By Andy Greenberg, CEO GF Data

When GF Data� published its various year-end reports last month, the analysis seemed to confirm what many business buyers and deal professionals had already drawn from their own experience.

 

The primary drivers of middle-market deal flow - company and industry performance, capital availability, macro-economic conditions, and public equity values - are more favorable to the private business seller than at any time since the mid-2000s, but the volume of change-of-control deal activity is just not on par with these favorable market conditions.

 

So, where are the private business sellers? And, if this accommodating environment is not inducing them to sell in greater volume, what will?

 

To read this article in its entirety please click here



Alliance of Merger & Acquisition Advisors
222 North LaSalle Street, Suite 300
Chicago, Illinois 60601, USA
877.844.2535 | 312.856.9590
 
The Alliance of Merger & Acquisition Advisors� (AM&AA) is the premiere International Organization serving the educational and resource needs of the middle market M&A profession. Formed in 1998 to bring together CPAs, attorneys and other experienced corporate financial advisors, AM&AA's 800+ professional services firms - including some of the most highly recognized leaders in the industry-draw upon their combined transactional expertise to better serve the needs of their middle market clients worldwide.