Last year, there were a total of 263 venture-backed M&A transactions with a disclosed value of $12.3 billion.  Although the volume of deals and their total value remained down from the previous year, the average deal size increased from $115 million per deal in 2008 to $143 million in 2009.

That said, average multiples are not what they used to be. In Q3 2009, 50% of venture-backed M&A’s (with a disclosed value) yielded less than the original venture capital investment. The multiples rose in Q4 2009 with 23% percent of the M&A transactions yielding less than the total venture capital investment; 24% were 1-4x total venture investment; 30% were 4-10x total venture investment; and 19% were greater than 10x total venture investment.

With M&A transactions yielding lower multiples, sellers have been increasingly focused on deal terms that can have a material impact on returns and legal exposure.  There are several M&A deal terms that are garnering attention, such as issues relating to the ultimate distribution of proceeds by sellers and legal considerations related to distressed transactions.

To address these issues, NVCA will be holding a webcast on April 9^th at 12:00 pm Eastern where we will discuss the most recent trends relating to venture-backed M&A transactions.  This program is open to anyone in the venture community.  Participation is free for NVCA members.  Non-members will be charged a nominal fee of $275 to participate.  This program will also be archived on the NVCA website for up to 3 months after the live broadcast.

To register or for more information about this program, please click here

To view past NVCA webcasts, please click here to visit NVCA's Webcast Library.

Questions or comments?  Contact Jeanne at jmetzger (at) nvca (dot) org.