M&A Foundations · glossary
Buying the business and assets out of a company, rather than the company's shares. The buyer picks what it takes and can leave unwanted liabilities behind. But each contract and licence must be transferred one by one, so regulated businesses are rarely sold this way. Chapter 3
Explained in Chapter 3, Deal Types and Structures, of M&A Foundations.
Buying a company usually means buying its shares (Chapter 1). But that is a choice, not a law of nature. The same business can change hands in two ways. In a share deal the buyer acquires the company itself, by buying its shares from the shareholders. In an asset deal (also called a business purchase or business transfer) the buyer instead buys the business out of the company — a chosen collection of assets, contracts and people. The company, now emptied, stays with the…Read Chapter 3, Deal Types and Structures →
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