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The Private Deals Network

Built for

M&A intermediaries

The private network where M&A intermediaries source deal flow, find buyers and sellers, and document every success fee and introducer split in writing.

M&A intermediaries source by relationship. The accountant signs off the business that is ready to sell. The lawyer flags the client who needs an exit. The other intermediary brings a buyer for a deal you have sat with for six months. None of this happens through advertising or cold outreach.

Socii is where those relationships are tracked. Every deal-flow referral is documented with an introducer agreement before the introduction is made. Every M&A success fee and introducer split is on the record.

Who you find on Socii

The dealmakers and professionals who complement m&a intermediaries on the way to a closed deal.

Accountants and tax advisors

Accountants are the most common source of mid-market sell-side mandates. Warm referrals from active firms.

Commercial lawyers

Lawyers flag clients heading toward exit, succession, or restructure events.

Other M&A intermediaries

Specialist intermediaries you can refer to or co-work with on cross-border, cross-industry, or sector-specialist deals.

Family offices and HNW intermediaries

Pre-qualified buyer introductions and warm capital relationships for buy-side mandates.

How m&a intermediaries use Socii

  1. 1

    Source mid-market deal flow from accountants and lawyers

    Connect with active accounting firms, commercial lawyers, and business advisors who refer clients to M&A intermediaries. Every referral documented.

  2. 2

    Find buyers and sellers across the intermediary network

    Cross-refer mandates with other M&A intermediaries when a deal is outside your zone (sector, geography, deal size). Co-work arrangements documented.

  3. 3

    Document every success fee and introducer split

    Built-in agreement template covers the mandate, the introducer chain, the success fee (or Lehman variant), the introducer split, and the tail period.

  4. 4

    Track every fee through to completion and tail period

    Fee ledger tracks every success fee through close and any tail-period transactions that trigger the success fee post-engagement.

People also ask

How do M&A intermediaries source deal flow in Australia?

Mid-market M&A deal flow comes through accountants, lawyers, business advisors, and other M&A intermediaries who refer clients ready to sell or acquire. Cold outreach to business owners has very low conversion; warm introductions through professional networks convert at 10x the rate. Socii is the private network where every deal-flow referral is documented and tracked.

What is a typical M&A success fee structure?

Lehman formula variants are still common: 5% on the first $1M, 4% on the second, 3% on the third, 2% on the fourth, 1% above $4M. Modern mid-market mandates often use 1% to 3% of enterprise value, sometimes with a retainer ($30k to $100k) and a minimum success fee floor. Introducer fees paid to source firms are typically 15% to 30% of the success fee.

How do M&A intermediaries split fees with introducers?

When an accountant, lawyer, or financial planner introduces the seller (or buyer), the introducer typically takes 15% to 30% of the success fee. The intermediary signs an introducer agreement with the referrer before the engagement starts. Document the exclusivity period (usually 12 to 24 months) and what counts as a related deal.

How long does an M&A intermediary engagement typically last?

Mid-market sell-side mandates run 9 to 18 months from engagement to close. Buy-side mandates can run longer (12 to 24 months) as suitable targets are sourced. The success fee is paid at completion. Most mandates include exclusive engagement (no other intermediaries) and tail provisions (the success fee applies if the deal closes within 12 to 24 months of engagement termination).

Do M&A intermediaries in Australia need an AFSL?

Generally not for pure M&A advisory and introducer work involving the sale of a business as a going concern. AFSL kicks in if the intermediary is also raising capital, dealing in financial products, or providing investment advice. Most mid-market M&A intermediaries operate outside AFSL but check the specific structure - asset sales and earnouts can trigger different rules.

Join the room m&a intermediaries use

Socii is a private, members-only network, and every member is reviewed. Step into Dealmaker, the private room where m&a intermediaries get the introductions that actually close.

Every member reviewed . The inner circle is earned

Built by Socii Book Pty Ltd (ACN 695 597 141), the private network for dealmakers. The numbers above are the same math we run inside the platform.