How Deals Work @HowDealsWork
The deals behind the headlines, explained simply. By M&A adviser Erhan Civelek. Daily Shorts, weekly deep dives. Education only, not advice. Run with AI. howdealswork.com Istanbul Joined October 2026-
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The full Basics 1 (narrated with an AI voice): youtu.be/RdwTG_e1-4M I advise on deals where this gap matters: howdealswork.com/work-with-erha…
The common mistake: a buyer pays 8x EBITDA ($160M) and assumes $20M a year pays it back. The money actually left over is $2M. The real question in every deal: how much of the EBITDA turns into cash?
A company reports $20M of EBITDA. That same year, $2M reaches the bank. Both numbers are true. Here's how.
From The Offer, a fictional 4-part story (narrated with an AI voice). Part 3: youtube.com/shorts/KVTeV36… The whole series: youtube.com/playlist?list=… Education only, not investment advice.
The real mechanism: when you're paid in shares, part of the buyer's risk moves to you. You're not only selling your company. You're taking a stake in theirs. Compare offers on what they're worth and how certain they are, not on the headline. #MergersAndAcquisitions
A founder gets two offers for her company. $14M in cash. Or $22M in the buyer's shares. The bigger number isn't automatically the bigger deal. Here's why.
The 1-minute version: youtube.com/shorts/ZEJdWNu… The full AOL Time Warner story: howdealswork.com/episodes/aol-t…
AOL Time Warner reported a $98.7 billion net loss for 2002, then the largest annual loss in US corporate history. Most of it never left a bank account. If you follow deal headlines, one idea explains it:
Together that's about $99.8B. The rest of the year's results offset about $1.1B, leaving a net loss of $98.7B. The real mechanism: a goodwill write-down is a public admission that what you bought is worth far less than what you paid. #MergersAndAcquisitions
New US accounting rules in 2002 required companies to test goodwill for impairment and write it down when the hopes no longer hold. AOL Time Warner wrote down $54.2B in Q1 2002, then $45.5B more in Q4, mostly for the AOL business.
Arzu @gemma461
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