Ulrich Ike joined CBA as M&A Advisor in January 2024. Educated at the University of Applied Sciences Ludwigshafen, Germany with final degree in Economics, he worked with PwC in Frankfurt and Hamburg for 6 years, for several banks in management position including CFO, and worked in France, Luxembourg, Germany, Austria, and the UK before starting his own Consulting Business.
The Spanish hotel company ‘Room Mate Hotels’ bought their first UK property, the ‘Lime Tree Hotel’ in London, with 26 rooms, encreasing the group’s presence in five European countries to 23 hotels.
The Manua-based company UP Pharma, distributors of dietary supplements and nutraceuticals sold 100% of its shares to Italian pharma group Giuriati from Padua. Giuriati specialises in the development and marketing of dietary supplements, nutraceuticals and personal care products in the pharmacy channel.
IHG Hotels & Resorts is set to open its second hotel under the Vignette in early 2024, the ‘Marbella Resort Hotel’ (Vignette Collection), on the World Islands Dubai. The hotel has 150 rooms with stunning Arabic Gulf views.
Michał Zwyrtek is a tax advisor, customs agent, co-founder and managing partner of a law firm.
He has been advising and supporting Polish and international business for over 20 years. He works mainly with boards of directors, middle and senior management, C-level executives, entrepreneurs and representatives of local governments and with owners of Polish private and family businesses.
He helps people and organisations to achieve their planned goals by providing competence in business, tax, legal and financial areas. His scientific and business interests include lean and kaizen philosophies and Industry 4.0.
Since September 2022, he has been the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at APA Group - one of the largest Polish companies in the intelligent industrial and building automation industry. He's also Interim CFO in various companies in southern Poland.
Previously, he was a partner and vice-president of the board of directors at the Polish audit and advisory firm UHY ECA, where he was responsible for outsourcing and tax consultancy.
Prior to that, he worked at PwC for nearly 14 years as a director in the legal and tax department. He co-managed the Katowice office and was a leader in legal and tax advisory for the automotive industry in Poland. He was also a member of the advisory team for private and family businesses at PwC.
He is the author of more than 300 articles and online publications. In particular, he cooperates with "Rzeczpospolita", "Dziennik Gazeta Prawna", "Monitor Podatkowy", "Przegląd Podatkowy" and "Nowy Przemysl". He is also a columnist for the Silesian Business portal.
He has been invited as an expert to television and radio programmes. He is also a speaker, panellist and moderator at numerous conferences, including the "European Economic Congress" "European Congress of Small and Medium-sized Companies", "International Economic Forms", "Executive Innovation Forum", as well as "Industry Next".
Since September 2021, he has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Tychy Regional Chamber of Industry and Commerce. He is also a co-founder and chairman of the presidium of the Silesian Business Lodge - a Think Tank created by a group of experienced managers and entrepreneurs from the Silesian Voivodeship.
He cooperates with other scientific and economic organisations, including the Nanonet Foundation, the Regional Chamber of Commerce in Katowice and the Polish Economic Society. He is a member of the tax committee at the Polish-German Chamber of Industry and Commerce.
Michał Zwyrtek holds a master's degree in economics. He graduated from the Department of Strategic and Regional Research at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Economics in Katowice. He also completed the international Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) programme conducted by the Gdansk Foundation for Management Education, the University of Silesia and RSM Erasmus University in Rotterdam. He is a graduate of the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) and Master of Laws (LL.M.) Magister Legum - "Business Law" studies organised by Collegium Humanum - Warsaw School of Management in partnership with Apsley Business School in London.
Additionally, he has completed over 30 certified business training courses (AgilePM®, PRINCE2®, MoR®, Change Management™, Management 3.0, Design Thinking, PwC BXT, CFA Institute Investment Foundations®, Introduction to ESG).
Michał Zwyrtek joined CBA in Poland as M&A Advisor, Tax Advisor, Customs Broker, and Business Consultant in July 2023.
Dr Jack Jacoby recently ended a Non-Executive Directorship role, but still retain other directorships. He is seeking to fill the gap that has been created and maybe you are aware of NED opportunities. Jack’s value proposition: He is different. He is a fresh and lateral thinker. He increases value, lower risk, and enhance certainty. He is not afraid of being different. He makes decision making easier for a better outcome. He’s very good with people…and he is very good at what he does.
Some key past highlights:
Dr Jack Jacoby can be contacted at exchange@cba.associates
Kamal Allaoui is a seasoned executive with over 16 years of solid North American business experience (USA & Canada) and 7 years of experience in North Africa. Outstanding business credentials in multi-disciplinary areas with top global companies. Recognised for driving performance and achieving superior results. Proven ability to successfully analyse critical business requirements, identify deficiencies, potential opportunities and lead teams for execution.
Kamal worked in the US, Canada and in Morocco. He has a Moroccan and Canadian citizenship and joined CBA as M&A Adviser.
Jyrki O. Soininen has over 20 years of experience in banking, finance, wealth management, corporate finance advisory and international fund placements. Before founding Soininen Corporate Finance Jyrki served as a partner in a Helsinki based corporate finance & fund placement advisory boutique. Earlier he has worked at Mandatum, Danske Bank and OP group.
Jyrki has Certificate in Corporate Finance (ICCF) from Columbia Business School (New York, USA) and Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) level 1, in addition to which Jyrki has studied M&A law at London School of Economics (London, England), advanced valuation at NYU Stern Business School (New York, USA), international finance at Maastricht University (Maastricht, Netherlands) and Economics specializing in finance, minoring in accounting, corporate strategies ja commercial law at University of Jyvaskyla (Jyväskylä, Finland).
Jyrki O. Soininen operates mainly in Finland and the other Nordics, and joined CBA as M&A Adviser in Helsinki, Finland in February 2023.
Making your company attractive to foreign buyers
Increasing globalization economy means that more business sellers are looking overseas for buyers. Many foreign buyers, in turn, are eager for American acquisition opportunities. These types of deals can be complex, opening the door for miscommunication. Anticipating challenges, however, can help smooth the way.
Appoint Cultural Ambassadors
Prospective foreign buyers may not only be unfamiliar with the ins and outs of your business, but also U.S. cultural customs, government regulations and labor relations. You can position your company as a more attractive acquisition candidate and smooth the process by assembling a group of executives to serve as an “ambassadorship” to a prospective buyer.
Charge this task force with explaining your country’s traditions, work practices and regulations. This group might organize a series of meetings in which managers from both companies can meet and discuss such topics as work hierarchies, distribution of power and responsibilities, and even office layouts. Informal meetings will help unearth any potential stumbling blocks long before the two organizations formally integrate.
Participate in Due Diligence
Due diligence generally is a buyer’s task. But foreign buyers likely will have their hands full trying to understand various legal and regulatory requirements. You can help keep the transaction moving forward by performing an extensive inventory of your assets. Draw up lists of tangible and intellectual properties and flag any potential issues, such as machinery in need of repair or real estate with potential environmental exposure.
Also, consider issues relating to human assets. Your HR department should compile a list of employees and determine if any of them might cause problems for an international buyer. For example, if you employ non-U.S. citizens, be prepared to explain their status - whether they’re here on a work visa, or are in the process of obtaining U.S. citizenship.
Assess whether employee health and retirement plans will be ready to transition to a foreign owner. Benefits - particularly when you propose transferring them to a non-U.S. company - can be a regulatory minefield, so you should work with third-party payroll services with experience in this kind of work.
How employees transfer to new owners varies depending on the buyer’s country of origin. In the European Union, for example, employees transfer to new ownership automatically. In Latin America and parts of Asia, the process can entail terminating the selling company’s employees and then rehiring them.
Be Reasonable
Sellers also can help facilitate a successful international acquisition by acting as the voice of reason in deal negotiations. Making your company attractive to foreign buyers. If a buyer has overly ambitious goals, such as an accelerated integration timeline, it may be in your best interest to argue for conservatism to prevent later disasters. If, for example, the buyer underestimates what it will take to transfer a database, ask your IT department to draw up a step-by-step chart of the process that includes realistic timelines.
Employee issues can flare up during international deal negotiations. An overlap between your and your buyer’s organizations makes redundancies inevitable. But if your company is likely to bear the brunt of layoffs, be candid with your employees and, to the extent possible, assist them in finding new jobs. Otherwise, morale will suffer and employees will be more likely to leave in masse, or, if they remain, be uncooperative - making it very difficult for the buyer to achieve its strategic goals.
Play Your Part
During the sale process, be respectful of your international buyer’s culture and do what you can to ease a complex transaction. Your attitude and actions may determine whether you actually cross the finish line and realize a good price for your company.
By Raquel Afriat, Owner and Managing Partner of
VR Mergers & Acquisitions in Miami, FL
(VR is CBA's Alliance Partner in North America)
