EQUITEQ ADVISES CMF ASSOCIATES ON ITS SALE TO CBIZ, INC.

June 2017

Equiteq is pleased to announce that it has advised CMF Associates (“CMF”), a leading provider of financial and operational consulting services to the private equity sector, on the sale of its business to CBIZ, a national, publicly-traded professional business services firm. The transaction closed on June 8th, 2017. This transaction highlights Equiteq’s position as the leading global provider of advisory services exclusively to firms in the knowledge-intensive business services sector.

Founded in 2001, CMF provides transaction and transition-focused financial, operational, and human capital solutions to private equity firms and their portfolio companies across North America. CMF has served more than 135 private equity funds across more than 500 companies with transaction advisory, office of the CFO, strategic financial planning and analysis, and executive search offerings. Specific services include post-transaction consulting and integration, buy- and sell-side carve-out, preparation for exit, dashboard and reporting development, and interim executive services. CMF has more than 75 associates including internal staff and outside consultants and recorded approximately $19.2 million in revenue in 2016. Founder and Managing Partner at CMF, Thomas Bonney said, “CMF sought a committed partner who shared our growth-oriented vision of scaling our position as a premier service provider to private equity and their expanding portfolio. We found in CBIZ an advocate that will provide us with offices across the country, complementary tangential services and the resources to drive portfolio value creation in a more comprehensive way and on a national scale.” Jerry Grisko, President and CEO of CBIZ, said, "The acquisition of CMF represents a strategic step in establishing CBIZ as an industry leader of professional business services to middle-market focused private equity firms. Our intent is to provide a level of service and breadth of expertise - that doesn't currently exist - to one of the fastest growing industries in the U.S. Tom and his leadership team will become integral leaders in our national private equity practice and we look forward to growing together." Tom Bonney added, “We hired Equiteq initially to assess the value and attractiveness of our business to the market. We were highly impressed with their knowledge of the consulting sector and their approach to understanding our business. Equiteq provided the right advice at the right time during the process; our initial decision in selecting Equiteq was validated throughout the transaction. We are extremely grateful to the Equiteq team for their expertise and tenacity in finding the right partner in CBIZ, and for negotiating a transaction that met with the objectives of our shareholders.” Adam Tindall, Director in Equiteq’s New York office, commented, “We were excited to be trusted by the team at CMF to help them realize their transaction objectives. They had clearly built a great business that their clients valued. Ultimately, this transaction is a great outcome for CMF and CBIZ. We worked alongside Tom and his team to position the business carefully and in a way that resonated with the buyer community. Our goal was to provide the CMF shareholders with options when considering the next home for the business and its employees. The strategic, synergistic and cultural fit with CBIZ was immediately apparent and we wish both parties the greatest success in the future.” To see all of our deals, please click here. ©Equiteq 2017