Published Articles

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As credit tightens, mezzanine financing plays bigger role
Co-authered by Mark French, Chairman of Mezzanine Debt: A Viable Source of Growth Capital in Good Times and Bad panel of the Northwest Growth Financing Conference
"The continuing turmoil roiling the financial markets has exacerbated the credit crunch and made lenders more risk averse. Lenders continue to reduce the availability of credit and limit leverage, which ensures that mezzanine financing will play a larger role in financing the growth of privately owned "middle market" companies in the future." (Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle))

What credit crunch? Recaps give business owners another option
"The credit crunch that has frozen credit markets has turned what was a seller's market for privately owned 'middle market' companies a year ago into a buyer's market, resulting in a severe reduction in the number of merger and acquisition transactions." (Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle))

Using Recapitalization To Unlock Value In Privately Owned Companies
"Many business owners and their professional advisors often overlook a viable alternative when considering a transition in ownership — the leveraged recapitalization, typically referred to in industry parlance as a 'recap.'" (Bank of America Capital Eyes Newsletter)

Unlocking Value in Privately Owned Companies (PDF)
"Many business owners and their professional advisors often overlook a viable alternative when considering a transition in ownership — the leveraged recapitalization, typically referred to in industry parlance as a 'recap.'"(Mergers & Acquisitions: The Dealmaker's Journal)

What has ACG Done for You Lately? (PDF)
"Nearly 20 years ago, I joined ACG Los Angeles. ACG's growth since then has been remarkable and many changes have taken place. However, one thing that has endured is the many relationships I've forged." (Mergers & Acquisitions: The Dealmaker's Journal)

Business Valuation: Art, Science or Pure Guesswork? (PDF)
"It is often said that determining the value of a privately held business is, at best, an art as much as a science and, at worst, a pure guess. To say the least, there are probably more methods used to determine the value of a business than there are ways "to skin the proverbial cat." Valuing a business requires an extensive process of information gathering and analyzing which, along the way, incorporates substantial judgmental factors." (Los Angeles Daily Commerce)

Privately Owned Firms Elude Simple Valuation (PDF)
"Owners of privately held companies are confronted with the need to establish a value for their businesses for a variety of reasons: sale of the business, buying out a partner, estate and tax planning, insurance coverage, bank loans, employee stock ownership plans, divorce or death. The task is not easy. The problem is compounded by the many different methods of valuation, with no single solution covering every business." (Daily News, San Fernando Valley, CA)

Management Holds the Key to Business Success (PDF)
"There are a number of traits that set apart successful managers from the merely average. First, and perhaps most important, is leadership. What are the characteristics of great leaders? Are they born with those characteristics or are they learned? The answer is probably a bit of both." (Daily News, San Fernando Valley, CA) 

Venture Capital: It's Scarce But Still Available (PDF)
"Professional venture capitalists for the most part have been shifting their focus into later stage investments, in particular, leveraged buyouts and expansion financing for existing companies. The returns are as great or greater than investments in early stage companies and are achieved in a much shorter time frame with significantly less risk. Where then does this leave the entrepreneur who is seeking to raise the investment capital necessary to translate his/her vision into a marketable product or service? What alternative sources of financing are available to the entrepreneur? Business enterprises are funded by many other ways. However, one has to work diligently at unearthing them." (Los Angeles Business Journal)

Business at the Crossroads: To IPO or Not to IPO? (PDF)
"During the lifecycle of every privately owned company, especially one that is rapidly growing, there comes a critical juncture. The decision to go it alone, sell out or refinance the business is a turning point from which there is no retreat. Whatever the decision, it will have a dramatic impact on the company's future." (M&A Today) 

An Outsider's Opinion Can Be Valuable to a Company (PDF)
"Entrepreneurs are successful because of their unyielding commitment to seeing their business succeed. Often this intense drive results in a less than objective analysis of problems, as well as opportunities, and causes unrealistic expectations. Outsiders can provide a more detached, balanced and dispassionate analysis of important issues by asking the difficult questions that many times are ignored or overlooked." (Los Angeles Business Journal)