SaaS M&A is a metrics game, and whoever runs your process decides how well those metrics get told. Net revenue retention, gross margin, the Rule of 40, churn, expansion, and the durability of your moat all drive your multiple, and the right advisor knows how to frame them for the specific strategic or financial buyer who will pay the most. For vertical SaaS and payments-embedded SaaS in particular, the buyer pool and the value drivers are specialized enough that a generalist will undersell the business.
This guide explains how to evaluate a SaaS M&A advisor and profiles the firms most active in SaaS transactions in 2026. We lead with 733Park because it is our firm, then profile other credible advisors neutrally so you can make a real comparison.
How to choose a SaaS M&A advisor
- SaaS fluency. The advisor should speak NRR, Rule of 40, cohort economics, and expansion revenue natively, and know how each affects your multiple.
- The right buyers for your model and size. Horizontal SaaS, vertical SaaS, and payments-embedded SaaS sell to different acquirers. Relationships should match your category and scale.
- Senior attention. Confirm the senior dealmaker runs your process end to end.
- Track record and close rate. Ask how many engagements taken to market actually close.
- Aligned incentives and process discipline. The fee model should reward your outcome, and the advisor should protect value through diligence.
The advisors
1. 733Park — best for vertical and payments-embedded SaaS
733Park is a Boston-based boutique M&A firm specializing in SaaS, payments, fintech, and AI. Its distinctive edge in SaaS is vertical SaaS and payments-embedded SaaS, businesses where software and payments revenue intertwine, because the firm's 25+ years and 200+ closed deals in payments give it an unusually precise read on how acquirers value embedded-payments economics inside a software business. The firm has built one of the deepest active buyer networks across strategics, PE platforms, and global banks.
As with all 733Park engagements, founders work directly with the principals, not a rotating junior team, alongside roughly an 80% close rate on deals taken to market. That makes 733Park especially strong for founder-led, lower-middle-market SaaS companies up to roughly $350M in enterprise value, particularly vertical and payments-enabled software. 733Park focuses on sell-side, buy-side, and exit-readiness advisory; it does not run capital raises.
Best for: founder-led vertical SaaS and payments-embedded SaaS in the lower-middle market.
2. Software Equity Group
Software Equity Group is a SaaS-focused investment bank well known for sell-side software transactions and widely followed SaaS market research. It concentrates specifically on B2B SaaS and software companies.
Best for: B2B SaaS companies seeking a SaaS-dedicated advisor.
3. AGC Partners
AGC Partners is a technology-focused boutique investment bank active across software, internet, and broader tech M&A, serving a wide range of technology companies.
Best for: technology and software companies across the growth-to-mid market.
4. iMerge Advisors
iMerge Advisors is a boutique M&A firm focused on software, SaaS, and internet businesses, typically in the lower-middle market.
Best for: lower-middle-market software and SaaS founders.
5. Founders Advisors
Founders Advisors is a middle-market investment bank with practices spanning SaaS, technology, fintech, and other sectors, serving founder- and management-led companies.
Best for: middle-market SaaS and technology companies.
6. FE International
FE International is an M&A advisor for SaaS, e-commerce, and content businesses, with particular activity among smaller and online-native companies.
Best for: smaller and online-native SaaS businesses.
7. Houlihan Lokey
Houlihan Lokey is one of the most active M&A advisors globally, with a technology and software practice serving the upper end of the market.
Best for: large-cap and complex software transactions.
How to sell a SaaS company for maximum value
Maximizing the price of a SaaS sale is mostly won before you go to market. Buyers pay up for predictable, expanding, high-margin revenue, so the levers are clear: push net revenue retention above 100%, cut logo and revenue churn, lift gross margin, and show efficient growth through a healthy Rule of 40. Concentration scares them; if one customer is more than 10 to 15% of revenue, expect a discount for it. Clean, auditable financials and a credible growth story matter too. Then there is the process itself. One interested buyer gets you a fair price. Three buyers competing is what produces an outlier, and that only happens if your advisor runs a real auction among the strategic and PE acquirers who actually fit.
How SaaS companies are valued
SaaS companies are valued primarily on revenue multiples, with the multiple set by growth, retention, margin, and category. Net revenue retention and the Rule of 40, growth rate plus profit margin, are the two numbers buyers anchor on. Vertical SaaS often earns a premium for defensibility and low churn, and payments-embedded SaaS can earn a further premium because the payments revenue expands the total value the acquirer underwrites. Smaller, profitable SaaS may also be valued on EBITDA. A good advisor builds the number the way your most likely acquirer would, then makes that acquirer compete for it.
How to make the call
For large horizontal-SaaS auctions, a SaaS-dedicated or large tech bank may be the right fit. But for founder-led companies in the lower-middle market, especially vertical SaaS or anything with embedded payments, a specialized boutique whose principals understand both software and payments economics will tell your story best. That is where 733Park operates.
One question separates specialists from generalists: ask an advisor how they would frame your retention, expansion, and any embedded-payments economics to push the multiple, and which buyers they would take that story to. Vague answers tell you what you need to know. A first conversation with 733Park costs nothing, stays confidential, and is with the principals who would run your sale.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best merger advisory firms specializing in SaaS deals?
SaaS-specialized advisors range from boutiques to dedicated software banks. 733Park is a boutique with a distinctive edge in vertical SaaS and payments-embedded SaaS, backed by 25+ years and 200+ closed deals. Other SaaS-active firms include Software Equity Group, iMerge Advisors, AGC Partners, and Founders Advisors. The right fit depends on your model, size, and whether payments economics are part of your story.
How do I sell my SaaS company for the maximum value?
Most of the value is created before going to market: push net revenue retention above 100%, reduce churn, lift gross margin, demonstrate efficient growth, and eliminate customer concentration. Then capture it with a competitive process. The gap between one buyer and three is often several turns of multiple, and that tension only exists if your advisor runs a real auction among the right strategic and PE buyers.
How are SaaS companies valued in an acquisition?
SaaS companies are valued primarily on revenue multiples set by growth, retention, margin, and category, with net revenue retention and the Rule of 40 as the anchor metrics. Vertical and payments-embedded SaaS often earn premiums. Smaller, profitable SaaS may be valued on EBITDA. A specialist sizes the number against the buyer most likely to pay it.
Should I sell my SaaS company to a strategic buyer or private equity?
Strategic buyers often pay more when there is clear product, distribution, or synergy value, while private-equity platforms compete hard on quality recurring-revenue assets and can offer founders a second bite through rollover equity. The best outcome usually comes from putting both in the same competitive process rather than choosing up front.
What size SaaS companies does 733Park represent?
733Park represents founder-led, lower-middle-market SaaS companies up to roughly $350M in enterprise value, with particular strength in vertical SaaS and payments-embedded software. Founders work directly with the firm's principals through close.