Can you really buy an MSP with 100% SBA financing?

The short answer is yes—provided the business and buyer qualify.

In the latest episode of M&A Insights, I sat down with Nick Padlo and John Wall from Live Oak Bank to discuss one of the questions I hear most often from MSP founders:

"How do I finance my next acquisition?"

I'll also be joining Nick and John on the Private Credit panel at IT Nation Grow Denver, where we'll continue the conversation around financing MSP growth and acquisitions.

A few takeaways that stood out:

💰 100% financing is possible.
If the business generates sufficient cash flow, an SBA loan can finance the entire acquisition in the right circumstances.

📈 Cash flow beats leverage.
SBA lenders focus first on the business's ability to service debt—not just the strength of the balance sheet.

👥 Customer concentration isn't an automatic deal killer.
Lenders look at the combined business after closing. If concentration is significantly reduced, they're often much more comfortable.

📊 Clean financials close deals faster.
Tax returns, current financial statements and verified add-backs matter. A polished CIM alone won't get a loan approved.

📝 Deal structure matters.
Traditional earnouts generally don't fit SBA transactions. Performance-based seller notes may achieve similar economics—but talk with your lender early to structure the deal correctly.

⏱️ Most financing delays are self-inflicted.
The average closing takes about 45 business days, but incomplete diligence, outdated financials, and endless purchase agreement revisions can quickly extend that timeline.

Whether you're buying your first MSP or your tenth, understanding how lenders evaluate acquisitions can save months of frustration—and dramatically improve your odds of getting a deal across the finish line.

Have you used SBA financing to acquire an MSP? What surprised you most about the process?

This podcast is hosted by Madhur Duggar. Madhur is a Senior M&A Advisor at Excendio Advisors and focuses on IT Services

Reach out to Madhur at Madhur@excendio.com or 212.731.4230

Book an Appointment with him on his LinkedIn at (34) Madhur Duggar | LinkedIn

Check out Excendio Advisors and our amazing content at www.excendio.com

Reach out to Nick Padlo on his LinkedIn at Nick Padlo | LinkedIn

Reach out to John Wahl on his LinkedIn at John Wahl | LinkedIn

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Based on my recent conversation on with Mike Williams, founder of Winxnet, one of the MSPs that merged to form Logically—one of the industry's first PE-backed MSP platform—and now CEO of Enterprise Value Partners. Having helped build one of the earliest platform success stories in the MSP industry, Mike shared practical lessons from nearly a decade of acquisitions, integrations and platform building. This article captures the ideas that resonated most with me.

Here are some of my favorite takeaways from my podcast with Mike:

1. Consolidation is inevitable. Embrace it.

You're either going to become an acquirer... or be acquired. The winners won't fight consolidation—they'll use it to create enterprise value.

2. Know your Deal; Know your PE partner even better

Don't just diligence the deal — diligence your PE partner and its portfolio. Negotiate your budget before close because they will hold you to it and bad things will happen when you don’t make budget

3. Let go of the Dopamine Addiction of Chaos

The day after closing, you have a job. Accept it. Many founders miss the adrenaline of being the hero. Mike calls it the "dopamine addiction of chaos." You have to let it go.

4. If your processes lives inside Wendy's head... you don't have a process. Wendy has it and will take it with her

Know your process, document your process, operationalize your process

5. Integration doesn't start after closing—it starts before Quality of Earnings is finished

✔ Build an Integration Management Office.

✔ Don't ask engineers to run integration — they already have a day job.

✔ Create a pre-close checklist of Agreements, Products, KPIs: Agreements, Products, KPIs, Upsell Plan

✔ Have a Communication and Change Management Plan

6. You won’t please everyone - amplify your protractors, let go of your detractors

15% of your acquired staff will love the exit. They are your Promoters. Amplify the Promoters. 15% of will hate the exit. They are your Detractors. Get rid of them if you want to keep your clients

7. When it comes to Integration - Sales is King. Yes, you heard that right

80% of the integration playbook is operational. 20% is sales. Focus on the 20%. Because sales pays for everything else.

8. Why FlexPath is working

Trust already existed. Everyone checked their egos at the door. Leadership roles were chosen based on what was best for the platform—not individual ambition. Once valuation was settled, everyone focused on growth.

9. MSPs aren’t going anywhere - they have a trust relationship with SMBs

MSPs aren't disappearing but they will need to evolve away from Service Desk to becoming AI and Automation partners and not everyone will get in the race.

10. MSPs that exit must make integration cheaper

Standardize contracts and reporting. Simplify and document processes. Rationalize tech-stacks. Standardize reporting. Don’t let integration costs keep you from exiting if that’s what you want.

11. If you want to develop a Leadership team, take that long vacation.

They can’t become leaders unless you let them. Take that vacation because your team needs it. Mike did, again and again and it changed his life.

12. MSPs want to exit but can’t find partners – We need incubation platforms

This industry needs incubators with real expertise in sales, lead generation, tech-stack optimization, legal, tax, valuation, M&A, and integration to help founders build the next generation of platforms.

www.linkedin.com/in/madhur-duggar

Most MSP founders spend years building value but almost zero time thinking about life after the deal.

That’s exactly why I sat down with Jamie Waldren—author of Exit on Your Own Terms—to unpack what real succession planning looks like.

Questions We Tackled:

• When should you actually start planning your exit?
• What’s the first step if you’re starting from zero?
• Why do most founders only think about exiting when a buyer shows up?
• How does your exit vision impact the type of buyer you choose?
• What makes succession planning harder for sub-$10M MSPs?
• Where do things go wrong without a plan?

Key Insights (Don’t Miss These):

An exit needs a Succession Plan like a road trip needs a Map
You can do one without the other, but you’ll probably get lost.

Start earlier than you think
1–3 years minimum. 3–5 years is ideal.

Work backward from your life—not your valuation
Your retirement goals should drive your deal structure.

Owner dependency kills value
If all key relationships run through you, buyers get nervous.

~50% of exits are forced
Death, disability, or unexpected events—planning isn’t optional.

ESOPs are underrated (especially < $10M MSPs)
A powerful, tax-efficient way to reward loyal teams.

Your plan determines your buyer
PE vs strategic vs employees vs family—this isn’t random.

One Action to Take Today:

Ask yourself:
“Who is the right next owner of my business—and what does my life look like after?” That single question changes everything.

If you’re an MSP founder thinking about an exit in the next 3–5 years, this episode is a must-listen.

Happy to share the episode—just drop a comment or DM.

This podcast is hosted by Madhur Duggar. Madhur is a Senior M&A Advisor at Excendio Advisors and focuses on IT Services

Reach out to Madhur at Madhur@excendio.com or 212.731.4230

Book an Appointment with him on his LinkedIn at (34) Madhur Duggar | LinkedIn

Check out Excendio Advisors and our amazing content at www.excendio.com

Reach out to Jamie Waldren on his LinkedIn at Jamie M. Waldren, CFP® | LinkedIn

www.linkedin.com/in/madhur-duggar

www.linkedin.com/in/madhur-duggar