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The 733Park payments and M&A glossary.

If you've been told a term and didn't want to ask what it means, this is where to look. Definitions are written for founders, not lawyers.

CIM (Confidential Information Memorandum)

The primary sales document in an M&A process, delivered to qualified buyers under NDA. Contains business description, financials, market, and growth thesis.

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Earnout

A portion of the purchase price contingent on the acquired company hitting specific financial or operational milestones after closing.

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EBITDA

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization. The most common profitability metric used to value M&A transactions.

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ISO (Independent Sales Organization)

A third-party company authorized to sell or lease payment processing services on behalf of a sponsoring bank or processor.

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LOI (Letter of Intent)

A non-binding (mostly) document that outlines the proposed terms of an M&A transaction. Triggers exclusivity and detailed diligence.

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Merchant Portfolio

The collection of merchant accounts a payments company processes for, valued for sale based on the income stream they generate.

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MID (Merchant Identification Number)

The unique identifier assigned to each merchant by a payment processor. The unit of measurement for portfolio size.

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Multiples

Ratios of enterprise value to a financial metric (revenue, EBITDA, ARR) used to value M&A transactions by comparison.

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NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement)

The legal agreement that protects confidential information shared between parties during an M&A process.

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PayFac (Payment Facilitator)

A company that aggregates sub-merchants under its own master merchant account, taking on underwriting and compliance to enable instant onboarding.

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Residual Stream

The ongoing income an ISO or agent earns from each merchant they have boarded, paid as a percentage of processing margin.

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Rollover Equity

When sellers reinvest a portion of their proceeds into the acquiring entity, sharing in future upside alongside the new owner.

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