M&A Foundations · glossary

Standstill

A promise — usually in an NDA where the target is listed — that the recipient of confidential information will not buy shares in the target or launch a bid for a period. It stops a "friendly" approach turning into a hostile one armed with inside knowledge. Chapter 5

Explained in Chapter 5, Preparing for a Deal, of M&A Foundations.

How it comes up, in Chapter 5
Standstill provisions. Where the target (or its parent) is listed, sellers add a standstill: the bidder promises not to buy shares in the listed entity, or launch an unsolicited offer for it, for a period. It stops a spurned bidder using what it learned in the process to go hostile. Solaris is private, so Sunrise needs none.
Read Chapter 5, Preparing for a Deal →

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Where this term lives

Every chapter of M&A Foundations is free to read, including the full training share purchase agreement. It is part of one complete fictional deal, with every document attached and a test after every chapter. Open M&A Foundations → · All terms A–Z →