About M&A Advisor Fees

What is on this site

One question, "m&a advisor fees", answered with a calculator that works on the page with no account, 4 guides on the questions around it, a data table you can cite (the figures and their method), and the sources every figure rests on.

• The Lehman formula, and why Double Lehman replaced it: The 5-4-3-2-1 ladder, the doubled version now standard in the US lower middle market, and the deal size where each stops making sense.
• M&A retainers: credited, uncredited, and what each means: A retainer credited against the success fee costs nothing at completion. An uncredited one is pure addition. The engagement letter decides, and it is negotiable.
• The tail clause: paying a fee after the mandate ends: A tail makes the success fee payable if you sell to an introduced buyer after termination. Standard and reasonable, but its length and its buyer list are negotiable.
• The minimum fee: what actually applies on a small deal: Below about $2m, the published scale is decoration and the minimum fee is the real price. How to find your effective rate before signing.

Reach us

Contact for a question about the site, or enquiries@madvisorfees.com. The legal terms are on Terms and Privacy.

M&A Advisor Fees is an independent site operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to any advisory firm or regulator named here, and it is neither a law firm nor a tax adviser. Nothing on it is legal, tax or transaction advice. The Lehman and Double Lehman ladders are market conventions rather than statutory rates, and this page prices them as arithmetic you can check; what any particular advisor charges is set by an engagement letter, and the minimum fee, retainer credit and tail in that letter routinely matter more than the scale printed at the top of it. We take no commission from any firm and carry no paid placements.