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    From thesis to the first 100 days

    We set the thesis with the searcher, then screen and value each serious target. We do the diligence Indian books need and shape the funding, and after closing we run the first 100 days.

    Choosing how to fund a search comes down to two questions: who pays for the search, and who decides which business gets bought. (read where we wrote it)

    21Months, the median from the start of a search to closing

    Who do we work with on an acquisition search?

    Three sides of the same deal: the searcher buying, the owner selling, and the investors who back the search.

    1. For searchers

      People who want to buy one business and run it.

      • The thesis: industries, size and region
      • Screening targets and meeting owners
      • Valuation and the letter of intent
      • Diligence, the funding and the first 100 days

    2. For owners selling

      Owners with no successor who want the business to carry on.

      • The books, the filings and the data room made ready
      • What the business is worth
      • A searcher, a company or a fund: which buyer suits
      • The handover plan

    3. For investors backing searchers

      Family offices and angels who fund a search or the purchase.

      • Independent diligence on the target
      • The model and the funding mix
      • Reporting after the deal

    Which four steps take a searcher from thesis to owner?

    The first two decide which business is bought. The last two decide whether the price and the funding hold.

    1. Set the thesis

      Which industries, what size, which regions, and what the searcher will not buy. A thesis that cannot be screened against is not yet a thesis.

    2. Screen and value the targets

      Each serious target tested on the earnings it can prove, the cash it turns into and how much of it rests on the owner, then valued before a letter of intent is signed.

    3. Do the diligence and shape the funding

      The diligence Indian books need, from the GST returns against the accounts to unpaid statutory dues. Then the mix of equity, loans and money left with the seller that the deal can carry.

    4. Run the first 100 days

      The finance function moved to the new owner, the controls on cash, and the first monthly report to the investors.

    What do searchers, owners and investors ask about ETA?

    What is a search fund?

    A way to fund an acquisition in two steps. Investors first pay for a search: a salary and costs while one person, the searcher, looks for a single business to buy. When it is found, the purchase is funded with equity, loans and often money the seller leaves in, and the searcher runs it.

    Can you do ETA in India?

    Yes, though the route is new here. The RBI's 2026 rules let banks finance acquisitions only for companies with ₹500 crore of net worth, there is no government loan scheme for buying a business, and many owner-run businesses keep books a buyer cannot rely on. Each changes how a deal is funded and checked.

    We have no successor. Is a searcher a buyer for us?

    Possibly. A searcher wants to run the business and usually keeps the team, which suits an owner who cares what happens next. Part of a searcher's price is often paid later, so the owner should check the buyer as carefully as the buyer checks the business.

    What do you do for investors in a search?

    Independent diligence on the business the searcher has found, a check of the model and the funding, and reporting once the business is bought.