Mergers & Acquisitions For Dummies

Chapter 8

Creating and Reviewing an Offering Document

IN THIS CHAPTER

Taking an overview of the offering document

Relaying company info

Noting financial numbers

The offering document, also known as the confidential offering memorandum (COM), the information package (IP), and the deal book, is the main sales document in the mergers and acquisitions process. More commonly, it’s simply called the book. Everything a Buyer needs to make an offer (not close a deal) is in the book.

In this chapter, I introduce you to the who, what, when, and how of the offering document. In case you’re wondering about the where, that’s up to you! Write it where you’re most comfortable.

The Offering Document in a Nutshell

The offering document is the deal book, the almanac of fact, the atlas of numbers. The offering document is the bible of the company. As with any written document, it becomes dogma. In other words … it’s kind of important. Take care to draft a complete, honest, and accurate offering document.

The Seller writes the offering document (or, as is often more accurate, the Seller’s advisors do). Writing an offering document is a time-consuming process, so Sellers need to make sure the book-writing ...