The Firmex M&A Fee Guide 2023-2024 — North American Edition
An exclusive regional look at M&A advisory fees in the North American middle market.
The Current State of M&A Advisory Fees
In partnership with Axial, and Divestopedia, the North American edition uses data from Firmex’s 7th annual M&A Fee Guide 2023-2024 survey and is an authoritative source on M&A fees for sell-side engagements in the middle market.
Key Highlights from the M&A Fee Guide 2023-2024
38% of North American middle-market merger advisors increased fee levels in 2023, prompted mainly by rising costs and a more difficult dealmaking environment.
Many firms also modified their fee structure to emphasize recurring engagement fees to mitigate the risk of deals that take a long time to complete or never close.
The growing use of earn-outs and complex deal structures prompted firms to redefine how they calculate and collect success fees.
Middle-market firms were able to hold their fee revenue steady and, for many, increase it.
Profitability largely held up despite rising costs. Those that increased fee levels were twice as likely to grow profits than those that didn’t.