Bracton Partners
The Founder Brief
What founders of software, fintech and data companies should know about M&A: one idea per issue, with the numbers behind it.
- Issue 4 · October 2, 2026The vastly underrated exit.
Long seen as a consolation prize, the acqui-hire has become a $40 billion exit for some of tech's most successful startups.
- Issue 3 · September 27, 2026You and your buyer are watching different numbers.
The numbers that set your price are the ones your ledger was never built to produce.
- Issue 2 · September 22, 2026When the buyer is a sponsor, part of your company's price is set in the credit market.
Cheaper debt lifted what sponsors could pay for two years. On September 16 the Fed changed that.
- Issue 1 · September 15, 2026Everyone knows that AI killed software. The recovery says otherwise.
After a selloff of up to a third this spring, application software has come all the way back, except for the fifteen largest names.
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