Connecting the Dots After a Complicated PE Deal 

2 Min. Read

A Private Equity Firm’s Recent Acquisition needed the Expertise of Accounting Aces to get Through Some Complicated Accounting Issues with Tight Deadlines. 

At A Glance 

Company Type: Private Equity firm, a mid-size private company and multiple add-on companies 

Industry: Private Equity 

Solution Area: Strategic Projects, Audit Support, Technical Accounting, Mergers & Acquisitions 

About The Client 

Focused on bringing value to innovative businesses, a Private Equity firm has helped several platform companies in high-growth industries flourish through add-on acquisitions. 

Challenge 

The PE firm’s platform acquisition was a stable company with promising potential and an accounting team that knew the business inside and out. 

But they were inexperienced with the challenges that come with M&A transactions. They needed technical accounting expertise for purchase accounting and help with analyzing the properly recording complex debt financing. 

They were also responsible for consolidating all the financial statements of the entities that followed the acquisition-all the companies involved had their own, separate accounting systems, accounting teams, and chart of accounts-and were up against lenders’ tight deadlines. 

Working against all this effort was the fact that no one person had knowledge of the accounting operations across all the acquired entities. 

Solution 

The company not only needed an infusion of technical accounting expertise, but experts who understood the entire picture; who were not fazed by the complexity of the organizational structure; and who could act quickly to get through these accounting challenges. 

ZRG assembled a team of consultants to address all these needs: 

• Provided project management to identify workflows, coordinate with various parties, and keep everyone on track 
• Navigated the complex debt structure of the acquisitions 
• Analyzed complex transactions and determined proper accounting entries 
• Prepared technical accounting memos and schedules to support the audit 
• Provided detailed workbooks and schedules for the accounting team to maintain for ongoing accounting entries 
• Introduced data mapping form disparate systems to produce consolidated financial statements 

Results 

• Lender package produced on time 
• Audit-ready financial statements with supporting documentation 
• Tools and templates for reference as the team continues to book journal entries and consolidate financial statements from disparate accounting systems 
• A mentored, stronger accounting team 

ZRG was invaluable in getting the newly acquired entities through their initial audit and setting up the team with a practical process for on-going timely financial statement reporting.