More Than Numbers: The Human Element in Independent Sponsorship
By Lou Sokolovskiy In the world of private lending and independent sponsor deals, success often hinges on more than just strong financials and market opportunity. This is a lesson...
Show Your Hand: Why Sponsors Need to Be More Transparent in 2025
By Lou Sokolovskiy Imagine this scenario: an independent sponsor has identified a promising acquisition with great growth potential. Negotiations are progressing, financing is being pulled together, but as the...
Roll-Up or Roll-Over? A Seasoned Leader’s Insights to Avoid Common Pitfalls
By Lou Sokolovskiy In today’s market, where “roll-ups accounted for over 80% of all deals” in the lower middle market (over 2,000 deals) last year, independent sponsors have increasingly...
Merchant Banking: Bringing the Investor Mindset to the Investment Banking Process
Insights from MiddleMarch Partners What if your investment banker thought like an investor—not just a dealmaker? The merchant banking model offers precisely that: a more engaged and aligned approach...
7 Common Pitfalls for Emerging Independent Sponsors: Insights from Bruce Lipian
By Lou Sokolovskiy, Opus Connect The Independent Sponsor Landscape The independent sponsor model in private equity is thriving, but it also presents unique challenges to emerging sponsors that haven’t...
Emerging Food & Beverage Trends: Insights from Industry Leaders
By Bill Bowler, Opus Connect The food and beverage industry is shaped by changing consumer preferences, economic conditions, and innovation. We spoke with several leading investment bankers to help...
Business Development Adaptation: Why It Trumps Time in 2025
By Lou Sokolovskiy, Opus Connect Business development adaptation is the key to thriving in today’s fast-moving world. If you’ve ever traveled to Cyprus, you’ve likely sipped a glass of...
Virtual or In-Person? It Doesn’t Matter If Your Business Development Strategy Is Strong
By Lou Sokolovskiy, Opus Connect In today’s business landscape, networking events are everywhere, sometimes literally in your living room via Zoom, and other times at bustling industry conferences. The...
Driving Positive ROI with Artificial Intelligence in Private Debt
By David Arturi, Lydonia Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming industries by driving efficiency, enhancing risk management, and enabling data-driven decision-making. For financial firms, AI offers immense potential to improve...
How Do Investment Bankers Address the Rapid Evolution of Technology in M&A?
By Bill Bowler, Opus Connect The rapid evolution of technology in M&A continues to reshape the industry, presenting both opportunities and challenges for investment bankers. AI in particular has...