ACCESSIBILITY TECH
UserWay
Acquired by Level Access Financial advisor to the seller
See the full track recordRecent wins
Track Record
Better outcomes run on influence.
One outcome at a time, then the full record — sell-side, buy-side, and capital-raise transactions across every sector we cover
HEALTHCARE IT
SpinSci
$53M majority investment from Aldrich Capital Exclusive financial advisor
See the full track record
CUSTOMER MESSAGING
respond.io
Investment from Camber Financial advisor to the company
See the full track record
M&AMobile Attribution & Analytics
Has been acquired by AppLovin
Financial advisor to the buyer
IPOTravel Tech
IPO, $3,500,000,000
Financial advisor to the company
Capital RaiseHospitality Tech
Received an investment from Marlin Equity Partners
Financial advisor to the company
IPOFintech & AP Automation
IPO, $660,000,000
Financial advisor to the company
De-SPACDTC & Consumer Tech
De-SPAC transaction
Financial advisor to the company
Capital RaiseFintech & B2B Payments
Follow-on offering, $615,000,000
Financial advisor to the company
M&AIntegration Cloud
Portfolio company of TPG & Francisco Partners
Financial advisor to the company
M&AHealthTech & EHR
Acquired by OptiMantra, a portfolio company of Mainsail Partners
Financial advisor to the company
M&ACommerce & Culinary Tech
Has been acquired by Target
Financial advisor to the seller
IPOE-Commerce & Logistics
IPO, $4,600,000,000
Financial advisor to the company
IPOAdTech & Commerce
IPO, $154,000,000
Managing underwriter
M&ACapital Markets FinTech
Has been acquired by Goldman Sachs & Blackstone
Financial advisor to the buyer
IPOLegalTech & Compliance
IPO, $535,000,000
Financial advisor to the company
IPOMobility & Rideshare
Lyft
IPO, $2,600,000,000
Financial advisor to the company
Capital RaiseCreator Economy & MarTech
Received financing from Heritage Bank of Commerce
Financial advisor to the seller
M&ACommunity & Events Tech
Has been acquired by WeWork
Financial advisor to the seller
IPOCloud Banking
IPO, $287,000,000
Financial advisor to the company
M&AConsumer Social & Media
Has been acquired by Mode Mobile
Financial advisor to the seller
Select transactions shown. Includes current Nfluence bankers' experience at prior firms. Full track record available upon request.
WHAT WE DO
One firm, two ways to put influence to work.
Advisory when you're ready to transact. Capital and operating experience when you want a partner who's built something before.
INVESTMENT BANKING
We put our influence to work getting you the best number.
Sell-side and buy-side M&A, growth equity, recapitalizations, and structured credit for technology, media, and telecom companies.
250+Transactions completed
$70B+Aggregate value
MERCHANT BANKING
We put our influence, and our capital, behind founders we believe in.
Direct Investment alongside advisory, focused on mission-aligned wellness technology and digital health companies.
Operator-ledCEO exits to Visa, Lowe's
$400MFund investment experience
Markets We Serve
Built for technology dealmaking.
Full-spectrum offerings, bespoke for every stage, focused exclusively on the verticals and horizontals shaping the digital economy.
Nfluence's Capabilities
Tailored strategic and capital advisory across the full transaction lifecycle.
Coverage Areas
Deep expertise across high-growth verticals, not broad coverage everywhere.
Counterparty Network
Deep relationships across sponsors, acquirers, investors, and founder ecosystems globally.
- Buyouts & Middle-Market PE
- Growth Equity Sponsors
- Institutional Credit & Debt Providers
- Strategic Acquirers
- Venture & Crossover Funds
- Family Offices
- Impact Capital
Software markets are global. The right acquirer, capital partner, or valuation benchmark is just as likely to sit in Tel Aviv or Seoul as in San Francisco, reached through direct, senior-level relationships built deal by deal, not referral networks.
Win With The Winners
Big-bank expertise. Boutique attention.
The expertise you'd expect from a big bank, with the attention you'd only get from a boutique. Our team has operated across bulge-bracket banks, middle-market shops, and boutique advisory firms. The senior team that wins your mandate is the same one that executes it, from kickoff to close.
MEET OUR SENIOR TEAM LEADERS:
Gary Moon
Managing Partner, Co-Founder
Gary Moon
Managing Partner, Co-Founder
Co-founder and Managing Partner. Founded the TMT practice at Headwaters MB and built it into a top-ranked technology boutique before spinning it out as Nfluence. An operator too: founder and CEO of Luna Communications, later CTO of its acquirer. Has advised founders on exits to AT&T, Cisco, Microsoft, Nuance, and WeWork.
LinkedInDetails
Jonathan Kaufman
Managing Director
Jonathan Kaufman
Managing Director
Managing Director. Has advised on more than $100 billion in transactions across large public and private companies, with execution experience spanning the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.
LinkedInDetails
David Lamb
Managing Director
David Lamb
Managing Director
Managing Director. 70+ completed transactions representing more than $30 billion in aggregate value. Deep standing in vertical software and in travel, hospitality, and events technology.
LinkedInDetails
Michael Hakim
Managing Director
Michael Hakim
Managing Director
Managing Director. Focused on technology M&A across education and government technology.
LinkedInDetails
Brewer Stone
Managing Director, Co-Founder
Brewer Stone
Managing Director, Co-Founder
Co-founder and Managing Director. More than two decades of global technology M&A experience, focused on commerce and marketplaces.
LinkedInDetails
Meet our full team
BIG-FIRM EXPERIENCE
FOR FOUNDERS & CEOS
Your life's work isn't a line item.
Every banker says "we run a competitive process." That phrase means nothing on its own, a process is only as strong as the standing behind it.
The senior banker who wins the mandate runs it
Start to finish, never handed off to an associate after the pitch.
A buyer list built on standing, not volume
Fewer names, higher hit rate, people whose calls get returned same day.
Honest valuation, not the highest bid to win you
We show the conservative case and the outlier case in the same breath.
WATCH • VIDEOLOGAN GREEN • CO-FOUNDER & CEO
"They ran a process built around one deal: ours. We walked in with leverage we didn't know we had."
FOR EXECUTIVE TEAMS & C-SUITE
Protecting the team that built the business.
Transactions impact leadership teams directly. We ensure key executives are aligned on incentives, post-close roles, and transaction momentum.
Management retention & incentive modeling
Structuring equity rollover, retention pools, and executive compensation packages that reward value creation.
Diligence without operational burnout
Managing data room workflows and buyer requests to protect daily business focus and executive bandwidth.
Post-merger cultural & organizational fit
Assessing buyer operational styles and leadership integration to safeguard the team's long-term success.
WATCH • VIDEOCHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER TESTIMONIAL
"They protected our team throughout diligence and ensured our tech vision stayed intact post-acquisition."
FOR BOARD MEMBERS
A champion your board will actually listen to.
Winning a mandate takes more than the CEO. It takes a board-level advocate with fiduciary alignment and a firm confident enough to command the boardroom.
Independent fiduciary alignment
Clear transaction governance, unvarnished valuation analysis, and boardroom credibility.
Market insight before you mandate
Real-time M&A market intelligence, comparable multiples, and strategic exit timing.
Maximum valuation with minimum distraction
Running a discreet, disciplined process that preserves company focus and momentum.
WATCH • VIDEOINDEPENDENT BOARD DIRECTOR TESTIMONIAL
"The advocate our board actually listened to, transparent from day one."
FOR INVESTORS & SPONSORS
Maximizing portfolio return and liquidity.
We partner with venture capital, growth equity, and private equity sponsors to engineer clean liquidity events and optimize outcome valuations.
Portfolio liquidity, handled directly
We work alongside GPs and fund managers to surface ideal exit windows and capital recapitalizations.
Co-investment & Merchant Banking
Direct alignment with mission-driven capital, co-investing alongside high-conviction growth rounds.
Diligence that respects founder relationships
High-integrity transaction execution that protects sponsor reputation and founder equity.
WATCH • VIDEOGROWTH EQUITY GP TESTIMONIAL
"They understood the nuances of our cap table and delivered a top-decile exit."
FOR BUYERS / STRATEGIC ACQUIRERS
Proprietary deal flow and sector conviction.
Direct access to high-caliber software and tech-enabled businesses with deep founder alignment and clear strategic value.
Curated, high-conviction deal pipeline
Early access to transformative market leaders before broad auction processes.
Direct dialogue with principal decision-makers
Streamlined due diligence and direct senior leadership collaboration.
Rigorous valuation & synergy analysis
Structured transaction intelligence designed to accelerate strategic integration.
WATCH • VIDEODAVID VANCE • HEAD OF CORP DEV
"Their deep domain fluency and founder trust made the acquisition process remarkably efficient and transparent."
WHY CLIENTS CHOOSE US
Reasons why founders choose us.
Ranked by what actually matters when you're choosing an advisor, starting with the record you should judge us on.
01
A track record on deals like yours.
- 250+ transactions, $70B+ in value. From IPOs for Airbnb, Coupang, and Lyft to sales like ironSource to Thoma Bravo.
- We've closed deals like yours, across sell-side, buy-side, and capital raises, at similar size and complexity.
- Proof, not promises. We walk you through the comparable deals and introduce you to the founders who lived them.
"They explained every stop of the process and communicated thoughout, so nothing surprised us when it mattered."
Founder & CEO, Airbnb
02
Big-bank experience, boutique commitment and follow-through
- Bulge-bracket craft. Our bankers trained at Citi, Moelis, DLJ, Piper Sandler, Stifel, and SG Cowen.
- Senior people do the work. The team that pitches builds the model, runs buyer calls, and negotiates terms.
- The same team from first meeting to close. The brand on the door matters less than who's in the room.
"The senior team that pitched us is the team that closed us."
CEO, Coupang
03
Deep sector expertise, and the buyers to match
- A focused set of markets, so we already know the buyers who pay up in yours.
- Better-fit buyers than a generalist, from real relationships in your exact vertical.
- Ask for your five most likely buyers. You get names, context, and the last time we spoke with each.
"They knew every logical buyer for us, and when they'd last spoken to each one."
CEO, ironSource
04
Valuation and positioning built on your business
- Your story, not a template. Built on your KPIs, growth drivers, and the risks a buyer will probe.
- Grounded valuation. Current multiples and recent comparable deals, not a generic range.
- Judge us on evidence. We show you our transaction multiples and close rates.
"Our story reflected how the business actually made money, not a template."
CFO, avidXchange
05
No conflicts. You are our only client.
- No PE paydays. We don't earn recurring fees from private equity or growth-equity buyers.
- Never a reason to favor the other side. Many brand-name banks earn heavily representing PE-owned sellers.
- Our only interest is yours, on this transaction.
"I've watched banks quietly work both sides. This team only worked ours."
Board Member, nCino
Why Nfluence
Bigger isn't better. Better is better.
The firms down the street run a hundred bankers across a hundred deals. We run one senior team on one deal at a time: yours.
We keep a smaller roster and a longer memory for the founders we've worked with, and what we hold ourselves to hasn't changed since our earliest days. Set us next to a middle market bank and the difference is structural, not a matter of size.
 | Middle Market Banks |
|---|---|
One sale at a time, yours. | You're one of forty deals on an MD's plate. |
The partner who wins the mandate runs the process, start to finish. | The senior banker disappears after the pitch; you get the associate. |
Relationships are personal, built over decades, they pick up the phone. | Relationships are institutional, they belong to the firm, not the banker. Hmm... |
Bespoke process built around your specific situation. | Process is templated. Decks look the same. One size fits all whether your deal does or not. |
HOW WE WORK
A successful outcome, driven by a disciplined process.
Thorough preparation, strategic execution, and a steady focus on closing the deal.
We keep a smaller roster and a longer memory for the founders we’ve worked with, and what we hold ourselves to hasn’t changed since our earliest days. Set us next to a bulge bracket bank and the difference is structural, not a matter of size.
01
Deal Preparation
- Develop a deep understanding of the business model: KPIs, track record, and future growth drivers.
- Define the deliverable strategy and the key actions that sharpen the profile before a sale.
- Build a powerful equity story.
- Prepare answers that address perceived risks ahead of time.
- Sense-check the management plan and pressure-test modelling assumptions so they hold up under investor scrutiny.
We work with management and shareholders to tailor and refine the story ahead of the sales process.
02
Buyer & Investor Relationships
- Build and refine the buyer and investor list, informed by our recent, relevant deals in market.
- Identify the parties who would benefit most from an early introduction to the opportunity, pre-launch.
- Initiate and maintain a meaningful dialogue.
- Feed early feedback back into the equity story.
We use our global sector relationships to identify the right buyer pool and drive pre-launch asset marketing.
03
Marketing & Due Diligence
- Prepare high-quality, on-brand marketing materials.
- Coach the management team for investor meetings.
- Run investor meetings that deliver the key messages with impact and consistency.
- Coordinate due diligence workstreams and day-to-day contact with bidders to keep momentum.
We bring deep sell-side experience to keep the process disciplined and efficient from day one.
04
Deal Negotiations
- Advise on the optimal deal structure and the alternatives worth considering.
- Maintain competitive tension among final bidders around two goals: deal certainty and value maximization.
- Play a central role in final negotiations so contract terms are optimized and aligned with key stakeholders.
We work alongside your legal advisers through the critical stages to maximize value and deal certainty.
INSIGHTS
What we're seeing in the market.
Sector reports and point of view, published on a cadence, not a one-off before a pitch.
WELLNESS TECHNOLOGY
State of the Wellness Technology Market
Where valuations are landing across digital health, care delivery, and employer wellness heading into next year.
Read moreTMT MULTIPLES
What's actually driving TMT multiples right now
A look at buyer behavior across strategic and financial acquirers in the current rate environment.
Read moreGROWTH EQUITY
Growth equity is back, selectively
Where investors are leaning in, and the diligence bar they're holding companies to before they do.
Read moreTMT MULTIPLES
What's actually driving TMT multiples right now
A look at buyer behavior across strategic and financial acquirers in the current rate environment.
Read moreFAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions grouped by audience, answered directly by our senior team.
How do I know what my company is actually worth?
For a real answer, talk to us. A calculator gives you a range. A buyer gives you a number. What moves yours is growth, margin, how much of your revenue comes back every year, whether customers stay, and who else in your market looks like you. We'll tell you what companies like yours actually got paid this year, then give you the conservative number and the one we think we can reach for, in the same sitting.
How are you paid, and what does a process cost?
Retainer, monthly fee, success fee, tail period. You'll see all of it before you sign anything. Most of what we make shows up at close, so we get paid when you do. We'll walk you through the numbers in the first real conversation. Nothing about how we're paid should ever catch you off guard.
Should we be worried about sharing detailed financials and customer data?
No, and here's exactly how it's handled. We start under an NDA. Nothing goes to a buyer until you've said who sees it and when. Anything sensitive lives in a data room where every person has their own permissions and every file open is logged, so you can see who looked at what. We also sit on a registered broker-dealer platform, so confidentiality and recordkeeping rules bind everyone here, not just the people on your deal.
We want liquidity, but the founder isn't ready to sell. What are the options?
You have more options than selling. Recaps, secondaries, structured credit, a growth round. Any of them can get early investors liquid without the founder giving up the company. Which one works depends on the cap table, what the business can carry in debt, and what the founder wants the next five years to look like. We'd rather sit down with the board and the founder together and work through it than show up with one answer already picked.
If I refer a client, do I stay involved?
Yes. Your client stays your client. We'll agree who covers what, share what we're learning, and call you directly when something material happens, so you never hear about your own client's deal from your client. Most of the attorneys and advisors who send us work end up more involved, not less.
Why should I take a call on one of your processes?
Because by the time you hear from us, the work is done. The seller has decided. The diligence file is built. The numbers have already been through it. We've done our homework on you too: what you've bought, what you paid, why this one fits what you're building. If it doesn't fit, we'll tell you and let you get on with your day.
What is merchant banking?
It's principal investing alongside the advisory business. We put capital to work in companies we believe in, often with other investors, and bring the judgment and relationships we've built as bankers. We're not trying to take over or tell an operator how to run the company. We're there to help good leaders fund the next stage of growth and be useful when the decisions get consequential.
What makes a company a fit for Nfluence as an investor?
Mission alignment comes first. We want to back good people running great businesses: leaders who are building something that matters, using technology thoughtfully, and showing up as engaged members of their communities. The numbers still have to work, but we start with the people, the purpose, and whether we can be a genuinely helpful partner.
Who actually runs my deal?
The banker who wins your mandate. Every call, every meeting, every negotiation. We take on a handful of processes at a time, so there's nobody to hand you off to. That's on purpose. It's the only way we know to stay close enough to be useful when the deal gets hard, and it always gets hard somewhere.
We're not ready to sell. Is it too early to talk?
No. Come talk to us early. Most of the founders we take to market, we met a year or two before they were ready. Early is when we can actually be useful: learn the business, tell you what buyers are paying right now, point out the two or three things worth fixing while you still have time to fix them. Costs you nothing and commits you to nothing.
How much of our time will this take, and who has to know?
Six to eight hard weeks up front, then it eases. And only the people you want in the room. Preparation is the heavy part, mostly you and your CFO pulling data together and stress-testing the model. After that we carry the paperwork so you can keep running the company, which matters because buyers watch your numbers the entire time. Plenty of our processes run with two or three people inside the company knowing, right up until diligence.
The board and management aren't aligned on timing. How do you handle that?
We bring evidence. You make the call. We'll show the board what companies like this are getting paid right now and who's actually buying this quarter, and we'll offer the founder the same picture directly. If we think waiting gets you a better outcome, we'll say so, even when that means we don't get the mandate.
Do you pay referral fees?
Depends on how you're licensed. Ask us and we'll tell you straight. Securities products and investment banking services are offered through BA Securities, LLC, a FINRA member broker-dealer, so any arrangement with an outside party has to clear the rules on referrals and finders. There's usually a way to work together. We'd rather show you where the lines sit than dance around the question.
Do you represent buyers as well as sellers?
Yes, and often on companies nobody else knows are available. We advised AppLovin on Adjust and Goldman Sachs on Ipreo. Buy-side is a different job: more time on the thesis, more work finding targets, more relationship building from cold, and a longer wait before anything happens. Tell us what you're hunting for and we'll tell you if we're the right people for it.
Doesn't investing create a conflict with your advisory work?
It can if the lines aren't clear. Ours are. The advisory business and the investment arm operate with separate teams, separate reporting structures, and separate decision-making. An advisory client is never pushed toward our capital, and an investment opportunity doesn't get special treatment in an advisory process. If a potential conflict comes up, we address it directly and disclose it early.
What is your investment mandate?
We invest after proof of concept, but before the business has achieved material operating leverage. That usually means the product works, customers are paying, and the next round of capital can accelerate a model that's already taking shape. We can provide growth debt or equity, use flexible capital structures, and lead a round or invest alongside a partner. The structure follows the business, not the other way around.
ABOUT US
Since 2011, Nfluence has earned its reputation as the leading elite boutique bank for technology companies
Roots in one of technology's most active M&A practices.
Nfluence Partners was built by the senior team behind a top-ten-ranked, technology-focused M&A group at Headwaters MB. Rather than fold that work into a larger platform, the partners set out on their own to build something more focused: an elite boutique that does one thing, technology dealmaking, with senior people on every engagement.
An elite boutique, built for technology.
What emerged became a leading independent investment bank for technology, media, and telecom companies, with a track record spanning 250+ transactions and more than $70 billion in aggregate value. We advise founders, boards, and investors on M&A, growth capital, and the strategic decisions in between, and we have earned the right to work on the outcomes where our judgment and relationships can materially change the result.
Headquartered in San Francisco, at work nationwide and worldwide.
Our home is 704 Sansome Street in San Francisco, a short walk from the water and next door to the Transamerica Pyramid. Our senior partners sit across the country, and our relationships reach across Europe, Asia, and Israel, so the right acquirer, capital partner, or benchmark is never out of reach, wherever it happens to be.
EST. 2011SAN
FRANCISCO
FRANCISCO
One relationship, one decision, and one outcome at a time.
A LETTER FROM OUR FOUNDER
Gary Moon
Managing Partner & Co-Founder, Nfluence Partners
Why we exist, and what we refuse to compromise
I've spent more than three decades around deals, capital, founders, boards, and bankers. I've sat on both sides of the table. I've seen what creates real value, and I've seen what destroys trust.
The best bankers are not the loudest people in the room. They are the ones with the judgment to see what others miss, the conviction to say what others will not, and the discipline to protect the client even when doing so puts a fee at risk.
That is the standard we built Nfluence around. We are not here to tell clients what they want to hear. We are here to tell them what they need to know, when it still matters.
A successful transaction matters. So does what happens after it closes. Did we protect the client's interests? Did we improve the decision? Did we strengthen the business? Did the people involved become better because of the work?
Those are the questions that matter here.
Since 2011, Nfluence has been built one relationship, one decision, and one outcome at a time. We have no interest in becoming the biggest firm in the market. We intend to be one of the most trusted.
That is not positioning. It is the standard.
With love, Gary
Gary Moon
Managing Partner & Co-Founder, Nfluence Partners