ADVISORY
Selling a technology company is a one-time decision with permanent consequences, and the advisor a founder chooses shapes almost everything about the outcome: who gets contacted, how the story is framed, how hard the process is negotiated, and how much leverage survives into the final weeks of diligence. In 2026, with private equity sitting on record dry powder and strategic buyers increasingly selective about AI-driven growth claims, the gap between a boutique that knows a founder’s specific niche and one that treats every mandate the same has rarely mattered more.
| Agency | | Best For | | Core Expertise | | Typical Deal Size |
|---|---|---|---|
L40 Partners | Founder-led software, SaaS, and AI companies with $10M–$100M in revenue that want genuine cross-border execution bringing U. | Sell-side M&A advisory for SaaS, software, and AI companies, with an emphasis on running a single competitive process across both U. | $10M–$100M revenue |
Software Equity Group (SEG) | B2B software companies with $5M–$100M in ARR, particularly in PropTech, EdTech, GovTech, HealthTech, energy, or manufacturing-adjacent verticals. | Sell-side M&A advisory, valuation guidance, competitive buyer positioning, and private-equity-driven recapitalizations and divestitures for growth-stage software companies. | $5M–$100M ARR |
Union Square Advisors | Later-stage venture-backed or public technology companies needing both M&A and capital markets advisory from a bank with no trading or research conflicts. | Sell-side and buy-side M&A, strategic positioning, activist and hostile-defense advisory, and capital markets work including equity private placements and debt advisory for technology companies. | Venture-backed & public |
Shea & Company | Founder-owned software companies that want an advisor whose entire practice — for two decades — has been built around the software industry specifically. | Buy-side and sell-side M&A, divestitures, spin-outs, recapitalizations, private placements, and capital raising, exclusively for software, SaaS, and technology-enabled services companies. | Founder-owned mid-market |
AGC Partners | Fast-growing technology companies valued between roughly $50M and $1B that need either an M&A exit or a growth-equity raise from a partner-led team. | Middle-market M&A advisory, growth equity financing, recapitalizations, and debt capital advisory, with senior partners involved at every stage of an engagement. | $50M–$1B valuation |
Corum Group | Smaller and lower-middle-market software and IT companies worldwide whose founders want an education-first process before and during a sale. | Global sell-side and buy-side M&A advisory for software and information technology companies, supported by an extensive in-house research database used to identify and reach potential acquirers. | Broad, global range |
Woodside Capital Partners | Technology and health-tech companies in the $30M–$500M enterprise value range that need cross-border reach into Europe alongside Silicon Valley relationships. | M&A advisory, strategic partnerships, and private placements for emerging growth technology and health-tech companies, with dedicated sector teams for AI, cybersecurity, and digital health. | $30M–$500M EV |
733Park | Founder-led companies from $2M to $350M in enterprise value at the intersection of software and payments — vertical SaaS with embedded payments, fintech infrastructure, billing platforms, and applied AI. | Sell-side and buy-side M&A advisory and exit-readiness preparation for vertical SaaS, embedded payments, fintech infrastructure, and applied AI companies. | $2M–$350M EV |
M+A Squared | Technology, media, communications, and life sciences companies pursuing cross-border deals where a small, entrepreneur-led team and direct relationships matter more than sheer size. | Cross-border buy-side and sell-side M&A advisory for technology, media, communications, and life sciences companies, with consultants based internationally to support global deal execution. | Cross-border, varies |
Capstone Partners | Founder- and family-owned technology, media, and telecom companies in the middle market that want a full-service investment bank with dedicated sector bankers. | Sell-side and buy-side M&A advisory, growth equity and debt capital raising, and financial advisory services for middle-market TMT companies. | Middle-market, varies |
This guide profiles the 10 best boutique M&A advisory firms for tech founders operating in 2026, evaluated across five dimensions: Services & Expertise, Affordability, Reviews & Reputation, Case Studies & Results, and Communication & Transparency. Whether a founder is running a $5M ARR bootstrapped SaaS company, a venture-backed infrastructure platform, or a payments-adjacent applied-AI business, this list is built to help match the mandate to the right advisor.
| Best for: Founder-led software, SaaS, and AI companies with $10M-$100M in revenue that want genuine cross-border execution bringing U.S. and European buyers into the same process.
L40 is a sell-side M&A boutique built specifically for founder-led software companies, with offices in Miami, Madrid, and Lisbon. Its partners have closed more than 180 transactions over 20 years across the U.S., Europe, and Latin America, and the team includes operators who have built and exited their own companies, including a co-founder of one of Europe’s first unicorns. Every mandate is partner-led from the first conversation through close, and the firm’s multi-office structure is designed to widen the buyer pool beyond what a single-country boutique can typically reach.
Services & Expertise
Sell-side M&A advisory for SaaS, software, and AI companies, with an emphasis on running a single competitive process across both U.S. and European buyer networks simultaneously.
Affordability
L40 targets the $10M-$100M revenue range, positioning it alongside other lower-middle-market SaaS specialists but with distinctly stronger European buyer access.
Reviews & Reputation
The firm’s partner-operator backgrounds — including founders who have sold their own companies — are a recurring theme in how it’s described by industry commentators covering boutique SaaS advisors.
Case Studies & Results
More than 180 completed transactions over two decades across the U.S., Europe, and LatAm, reflecting sustained cross-border deal flow rather than a single-region practice.
Communication & Transparency
Every engagement is led by a partner from the first call onward, and the firm’s multi-office model means European and U.S. buyer conversations run in parallel rather than sequentially.
| Best for: B2B software companies with $5M–$100M in ARR, particularly in PropTech, EdTech, GovTech, HealthTech, energy, or manufacturing-adjacent verticals.
Software Equity Group, based in Encinitas, California, has advised exclusively on software company transactions for more than 25 years. The firm tracks its own SEG SaaS Index of more than 100 publicly traded cloud companies and publishes an annual SaaS M&A report drawing on data from nearly 2,700 recorded deals, giving it an unusually deep, research-backed view of where valuations are heading. SEG cites a 94% success rate on engaged mandates and leads U.S. PropTech M&A by deal count, with additional depth in five other verticals.
Services & Expertise
Sell-side M&A advisory, valuation guidance, competitive buyer positioning, and private-equity-driven recapitalizations and divestitures for growth-stage software companies.
Affordability
SEG works with companies generating $5M to $100M in ARR, positioning it in the lower-middle to middle market — above pure micro-SaaS brokers but below the large tech-only banks.
Reviews & Reputation
Client testimonials highlight thorough, proactive process management and a noticeably more rigorous approach than generalist advisors; the firm’s 25-year focus on software has built a long relationship history with strategic and private-equity buyers.
Case Studies & Results
Track record spans hundreds of completed software sell-side transactions and billions of dollars in aggregate deal value, with particular depth in PropTech, HealthTech, and GovTech.
Communication & Transparency
SEG’s process leans on data-driven positioning from the outset — a proprietary 20-Factor Valuation Scorecard and ongoing market research inform how each mandate is priced and marketed to buyers.
| Best for: Later-stage venture-backed or public technology companies needing both M&A and capital markets advisory from a bank with no trading or research conflicts.
Union Square Advisors was founded in 2007 by Carter McLelland, the former chairman of Bank of America’s Securities division, and operates out of San Francisco and New York. The firm has advised on more than 170 strategic transactions worth in excess of $118 billion, spanning enterprise software and infrastructure, fintech, healthcare IT, internet and digital media, and AI and machine learning. Because Union Square does not run trading or research desks, it markets itself as free of the conflicts that can arise at larger banks advising the same sector.
Services & Expertise
Sell-side and buy-side M&A, strategic positioning, activist and hostile-defense advisory, and capital markets work including equity private placements and debt advisory for technology companies.
Affordability
The firm’s deal history skews toward larger, more capital-intensive transactions than most lower-middle-market boutiques, reflecting its work with venture-backed and public technology companies.
Reviews & Reputation
Union Square’s senior bankers are former heads of major banks’ technology practices, and the firm is frequently cited for deep sector knowledge across AI, cybersecurity, and enterprise software.
Case Studies & Results
Recent representative work includes advising optoelectronics company NeoPhotonics on its sale to Lumentum, alongside a broader portfolio of technology M&A and financing mandates.
Communication & Transparency
Clients work directly with senior, sector-dedicated bankers rather than a generalist coverage team, which the firm positions as central to how it delivers strategic advice.
| Best for: Founder-owned software companies that want an advisor whose entire practice — for two decades — has been built around the software industry specifically.
Shea & Company was founded in 2005 by Michael H.M. Shea and operates from Boston and San Francisco. The firm has advised on more than $50 billion in completed transactions across data and analytics, DevOps, security, and human capital management software, working with clients across North America, Europe, Israel, and APAC. Its stated philosophy is that focus — advising on software and nothing else — is what produces better outcomes for founder-owned companies weighing culture and employee treatment alongside price.
Services & Expertise
Buy-side and sell-side M&A, divestitures, spin-outs, recapitalizations, private placements, and capital raising, exclusively for software, SaaS, and technology-enabled services companies.
Affordability
Shea & Company works across a range of deal sizes within software but is best known for founder-owned mid-market mandates rather than micro-cap sales.
Reviews & Reputation
The firm is regularly included among the most active software-focused investment banks by deal volume, with a two-decade relationship history across software private equity and strategic acquirers globally.
Case Studies & Results
More than 130 tracked sell-side and buy-side engagements, including recent mandates such as the sale of Raken to Sverica Capital and ongoing work with Red Gate Software.
Communication & Transparency
Because the firm works only in software, clients get bankers who already know the relevant strategic and PE buyer universe rather than needing to build it mandate by mandate.
| Best for: Fast-growing technology companies valued between roughly $50M and $1B that need either an M&A exit or a growth-equity raise from a partner-led team.
AGC Partners was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Boston, with nine global offices including London and Tel Aviv. Co-founded by R. Gregg Nourjian and Maria Lewis Kussmaul, the firm has completed more than 585 transactions since inception and consistently ranks among the most active technology-focused boutiques by deal count. AGC covers AI, SaaS, cybersecurity, fintech, and healthcare IT, and maintains close relationships with private equity buyers such as Thoma Bravo, Vista, and K1.
Services & Expertise
Middle-market M&A advisory, growth equity financing, recapitalizations, and debt capital advisory, with senior partners involved at every stage of an engagement.
Affordability
AGC’s typical client sits in the $50M–$1B valuation range, making it a fit for growth-stage companies that have outgrown micro-cap boutiques but aren’t yet bulge-bracket candidates.
Reviews & Reputation
Founders and CEOs consistently cite the firm’s persistence in sourcing aligned partners and its senior-banker involvement throughout the process, rather than handing mandates to junior staff after signing.
Case Studies & Results
Closed 28 deals in 2025 alone — a mix of private equity platform investments and strategic sales — continuing a track record of more than 585 transactions since 2003.
Communication & Transparency
AGC positions its partner-led, high-touch model as a direct alternative to larger banks, with dedicated senior bankers staying engaged from origination through close.
| Best for: Smaller and lower-middle-market software and IT companies worldwide whose founders want an education-first process before and during a sale.
Corum Group has operated since the 1980s out of Bothell, Washington, and describes itself as the global leader in software M&A, having completed more than 500 transactions and over $20 billion in transaction value across six continents. The firm is distinctive for its heavy investment in seller education — its Selling Up, Selling Out conferences, Tech M&A Monthly webcast, and Merge Briefings run continuously worldwide to prepare technology CEOs for the mechanics of a sale before they ever engage an advisor.
Services & Expertise
Global sell-side and buy-side M&A advisory for software and information technology companies, supported by an extensive in-house research database used to identify and reach potential acquirers.
Affordability
Corum’s global reach and research-driven outbound process are built to serve a broad range of software company sizes, including smaller sellers that some boutiques would consider sub-scale.
Reviews & Reputation
Recognized on Axial’s list of Top 50 Lower Middle Market Technology Investors and M&A Advisors, with a long-standing reputation among founder-led software sellers internationally.
Case Studies & Results
Recent completed engagements include the sale of Better Impact to The Brydon Group and the sale of Fing, alongside a broader base of more than 300 tracked transactions.
Communication & Transparency
Corum pairs each engagement with its research staff and a global buyer database, and is known for reaching a wide, often international pool of buyers quickly once a mandate goes to market.
| Best for: Technology and health-tech companies in the $30M–$500M enterprise value range that need cross-border reach into Europe alongside Silicon Valley relationships.
Woodside Capital Partners was founded in 2001 by Rudy Burger and operates from Silicon Valley, London, and Zurich. The firm has completed transactions totaling more than $10 billion across SaaS, internet services, electronics, communications, materials, and health tech, with particular sector depth in computer vision, AI, and cybersecurity. Its cross-border structure gives founders access to venture capital, private equity, and Global 1000 corporate buyers across both U.S. and European markets.
Services & Expertise
M&A advisory, strategic partnerships, and private placements for emerging growth technology and health-tech companies, with dedicated sector teams for AI, cybersecurity, and digital health.
Affordability
Woodside is positioned in the $30M–$500M enterprise value segment, putting it above micro-cap sell-side shops but below the large tech-only investment banks.
Reviews & Reputation
The firm’s partners are frequent industry speakers and publishers of sector research — including reports on top AI acquirers — reflecting long-standing relationships across the technology and health-tech investor base.
Case Studies & Results
A multi-decade transaction history exceeding $10 billion in completed deal value, with recent mandates including the sale of Actenum Corporation to Prometheus Group.
Communication & Transparency
Clients get direct access to Woodside’s small, sector-specialist partner group rather than a large deal team, consistent with its self-description as an ultra-personalized advisory boutique.
| Best for: Founder-led companies from $2M to $350M in enterprise value at the intersection of software and payments — vertical SaaS with embedded payments, fintech infrastructure, billing platforms, and applied AI.
733Park is a Boston-based boutique with more than 25 years and 200-plus closed transactions representing over $10 billion in volume, concentrated specifically where software meets money movement. The firm’s model is built around direct principal involvement: founders work with the firm’s partners from the first call through close, not a rotating junior deal team. 733Park is a pure advisory shop — sell-side, buy-side, and exit-readiness work only — and does not run capital raises or securities offerings.
Services & Expertise
Sell-side and buy-side M&A advisory and exit-readiness preparation for vertical SaaS, embedded payments, fintech infrastructure, and applied AI companies.
Affordability
The firm’s stated range of $2M–$350M in enterprise value makes it accessible to earlier-stage founder-led companies as well as larger, more established payments and infrastructure businesses.
Reviews & Reputation
733Park is frequently cited in industry roundups of tech-focused M&A advisors specifically for its payments and fintech infrastructure specialization, an area few generalist boutiques cover in depth.
Case Studies & Results
More than 200 closed transactions representing over $10 billion in aggregate volume across 25-plus years of dealmaking in software and payments.
Communication & Transparency
Because mandates are principal-led rather than staffed down to junior bankers, founders deal with the same senior person throughout diligence, negotiation, and close.
| Best for: Technology, media, communications, and life sciences companies pursuing cross-border deals where a small, entrepreneur-led team and direct relationships matter more than sheer size.
M+A Squared is a New York-based boutique advisory firm founded by Ran Assaf, specializing in cross-border mergers and acquisitions at the intersection of technology, media, communications, and life sciences. The firm is built around a small team of seasoned entrepreneurs rather than career bankers, and it works both sides of the table — buy-side and sell-side, private and public companies — leveraging direct relationships with corporate leaders and private equity firms across multiple countries.
Services & Expertise
Cross-border buy-side and sell-side M&A advisory for technology, media, communications, and life sciences companies, with consultants based internationally to support global deal execution.
Affordability
As a small, senior-only team, M+A Squared is positioned for founders who want direct, personal engagement over the scale and infrastructure of a larger technology-only bank.
Reviews & Reputation
Independent boutique-advisory roundups regularly name M+A Squared specifically for its technology, media, and life sciences cross-border specialization among firms of its size.
Case Studies & Results
Notable completed deals include Hungry Marketplace’s acquisition of Ripe, Cprime’s acquisition of Ukraine-based Archer, and CAC’s acquisition of Mitrais in Indonesia.
Communication & Transparency
With a small internationally distributed team, founders typically deal directly with the firm’s senior principals throughout a transaction rather than a layered deal team.
| Best for: Founder- and family-owned technology, media, and telecom companies in the middle market that want a full-service investment bank with dedicated sector bankers and deep growth-equity and buyer relationships.
Capstone Partners is a Boston-based middle-market investment bank with more than two decades of history and a dedicated Technology, Media & Telecom (TMT) Group serving emerging and growth-stage technology companies. The TMT team is led by senior bankers with deep sector tenure, including veterans of earlier tech-focused boutiques, and the group has closed transactions spanning software, communications, healthcare IT, and digital media. As part of a larger full-service platform, Capstone pairs its M&A advisory work with capital markets, restructuring, and valuation capabilities that a smaller boutique typically cannot offer directly.
Services & Expertise
Sell-side and buy-side M&A advisory, growth equity and debt capital raising, and financial advisory services for middle-market technology, media, and telecom companies, delivered by a dedicated TMT sector team.
Affordability
Capstone works predominantly with middle-market technology companies and offers the resourcing of a larger, multi-practice investment bank while remaining focused on founder- and family-owned businesses rather than only large-cap mandates.
Reviews & Reputation
Capstone’s TMT Group is regularly cited by clients for senior banker involvement and sector-specific research, and the firm as a whole is consistently ranked among the most active investment banks in U.S. middle-market M&A by deal volume.
Case Studies & Results
The TMT Group has closed multiple transactions annually across software, healthcare IT, and communications, and Capstone Partners overall has advised on thousands of engagements for middle-market owners, investors, and creditors over more than two decades.
Communication & Transparency
Clients consistently cite senior banker commitment throughout the process, with Capstone’s TMT leadership staying directly engaged from initial positioning through closing rather than handing mandates off to junior staff.
Start with Best For — match the firm’s description to your company’s stage, sector, and deal size before comparing anything else. A generalist boutique that occasionally closes software deals is a different proposition from a firm that has built its entire practice, buyer network, and comparables around your specific niche.
Then check Core Expertise against the capability you actually need: pure sell-side representation, cross-border buyer reach, growth-equity financing alongside M&A, or deep vertical knowledge in payments, AI, or healthcare IT. These are distinct skill sets, and few firms are genuinely strong across all of them.
Use Typical Deal Size as a filter, not a guarantee — most boutique M&A advisors work on success-fee economics tied to the eventual transaction value, and a firm built for $500M enterprise value deals will rarely give a $5M ARR company the attention a smaller specialist would. Engaging an advisor 9–18 months before a planned transaction, rather than after an unsolicited offer arrives, consistently produces better outcomes than a reactive process.
Bill Nash is the CMO of Marketing LTB with over a decade of experience, he has driven growth for Fortune 500 companies and startups through data-driven campaigns and advanced marketing technologies. He has written over 400 pieces of content about marketing, covering topics like marketing tips, guides, AI in advertising, advanced PPC strategies, conversion optimization, and others.
