Taha Ahmed

Fractional CFO/CSO services focused on strategic finance, M&A, and value creation. Ex @GoldmanSachs & @Forbes. Tweets: Tech, Biz, Macro & Crypto.

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

So, you want to grow and drive shareholder value?

Over the last 10+ years, I’ve helped CEOs and boards deploy capital across M&A, partnerships, and internal investment to create real enterprise value.

After a certain scale, almost every company will develop a corporate development division. But, you will be surprised on how few "really" understand how corporate development actually drives shareholder value — and which strategies outperform.

In this thread, I unpack the Build vs. Buy vs. Partner framework used by corporate development teams with 20+ years of market data, case studies, and signals every CEO and investor should understand.

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@jn_jackk List

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@everestchris6 @eptwts Hustle

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@coldemailchris playbook

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@termsheetinator Ai

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@MichLieben Send

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@paulswaney3 That’s big move .. been debating this. Excel work has been the blocker

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

Recently came across a deal with misclassified external contractors ..

I’ve sat on the buy-side of M&A for over a decade... Among other things, I've learned that (a) Founders are the engine of our economy, (b) global talent arbitrage is undeniably the most effective lever for extending runway and accessing brilliant engineers, but (c) when a DD team flags a tax risk the best default reaction is to assume the deal structure is broken rather than try to explain it away.

The common startup advice ("Just hire global devs as contractors to save the 10% EOR fee") is a simplistic reaction that panders to the move fast narrative. This sort of advice can be misleading because it ignores the massive liability shift that occurs when a company matures from scrappy startup to acquisition target.

If you want to better understand why deals stall, a good place to start is reading up on successor liability and indemnity escrows, rather than just optimizing your monthly burn rate.

How much EV has been trapped in escrow accounts due to contractor misclassification risks in the last few years?

companies/founders preparing to exit should consider compliance fee to clean up before the DD team starts looking.

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@ankurnagpal Solo

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@PEoperator heck of story tho..

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@Will_Schryver The market pays for growth, but it overpays for certainty.

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@StealthQE4 Improving GDP is a counter narrative for lowering interest rate push

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

The most bullish signal here isn't the 4.3% print itself it's the velocity of the reversal.

[Geiger Capital @Geiger_Capital]

Wow.

US Q3 GDP:
+4.3% vs 3.3% exp.

Recession from Q1 canceled. Strong growth.

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@KobeissiLetter The US household balance sheet is trading stability for volatility...

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@LRH_Superfan And the Middle Class is becoming a rounding error on the balance sheet.

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@pitdesi Airlines have stopped selling transportation and started selling real estate and the premium market is currently the highest-yielding landlord in the sky.

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@KHendersonCo The working capital peg determines the wire amount

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

Paying 15x effectively a SaaS multiple for an accounting practice implies you can convert labor-heavy COGS into compute-heavy COGS. The math works if that 80% reduction is real, but expenses rarely vanish. In my experience they shift.

VC backed roll up firms are also trying to do this, Thrive cap

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@BigJohn043 Arbitrage is a financial strategy but integration is an operational discipline. There is a chance some VCs are currently mistaking the former for the latter. Although, some VCs have real chops, I'd say early results are year or two out..

[Taha Ahmed @tahaahmed]

@lisaabramowicz1 The risk that breaks the market is rarely the one 57% of participants have already hedged against.