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The Situation
Municode initially hired Ascend in a buy-side capacity to develop a comprehensive, end-to-end M&A strategy. Over the course of the engagement, our team developed an in-depth familiarity with Municode and what was important to the shareholders–culture, people, and vision. As Municode began entertaining a sale, they hired us as their sell-side advisor. The shareholders valued not only our deep knowledge of the GovTech space, but also that we knew finding a partner that checked all three boxes was just as important as a compelling valuation.
- Buy-side: Performed market research on various geographic markets and product verticals to formulate acquisition priorities, developed an extensive pipeline of over 300 acquisition candidates, conducted outreach and vetted prospective targets, completed merger modeling and valuation analysis, built diligence data packs for the board and management team, and helped develop a vision and thesis around scaling the company. Over time, we became a true extension of Municode’s team supporting all of their corporate development needs.
- Sell-side: Our team leveraged proprietary insight into market comps, relevancy in the space, and relationships with buyers to help guide the company through conversations with CivicPlus and its private equity investor, Insight Partners. We negotiated the LOI and deal structure on behalf of the shareholders, prepared materials and presentations that aided in the sale process, and managed the due diligence process to facilitate a swift closing.
