Capital raise · IT Services & MSPs

Independent Sponsor Co-Investment Rights in IT Services & MSPs

When the deal is IT services and MSPs and the question is Co-Investment Rights, the structure decisions in the first 30 days outlast the next five years. This is where Jason Powell works.

EV range $8M to $100M EV EBITDA $2M to $18M Audience Independent Sponsor
The deal context

IT Services & MSPs deals in the lower middle market run a specific playbook. Co-Investment Rights is where the structure either holds or starts to leak.

The typical IT services and MSPs platform sits at $8M to $100M EV with EBITDA in the $2M to $18M range. The thesis runs on MSP platform with regional or vertical-specific bolt-ons. An MSP at 70% recurring revenue trades at one multiple, at 90% trades at a different one. The mix is the deal.

The moves

How Co-Investment Rights actually gets structured.

  1. Define co-invest rights pro-rata to the LP's deal commitment.

  2. Build a 30-day decision window so the deal does not stall.

  3. Limit co-invest fees and carry, if any, to reflect the relationship value.

  4. Document the right in the LPA, not in a side letter.

  5. In IT services and MSPs, layer in MSA assignment review with carve-outs noted as part of the Co-Investment Rights workstream.

The common mistake

Granting unlimited co-invest. The next LP finds out and your firm economics suffer.

Jason's take
"Co-investment is a privilege you give to the LPs you want to keep. Define it accordingly."
Jason Powell · Co-Investment Rights
Capital after close

The deal is one thing. The capital that opens up after close is another.

The capital that opens up post-close, from refinancing to growth equity to strategic exit, runs through a small set of Wall Street relationships. That network is built in.

MONTH 18
Senior refi
MONTH 24
Dividend recap
MONTH 36
Growth equity
YEAR 4–5
Strategic exit
TALK TO JASON

An LOI on the desk, a IT services and MSPs target, and a Co-Investment Rights question worth a real conversation.

Twenty minutes of practitioner-grade input from a securities attorney whose first move is to read the deal, not the engagement letter.