M&A Due Diligence Checklist – Important Documents to Include in Your Investor Data Room

Investor data rooms are secure virtual spaces that businesses use to share sensitive information with buyers and advisors during due diligence of M&A deals. These rooms are usually secured and continuously monitored to ensure that the information they store does not fall into improper hands. Top virtual data room providers provide due diligence checklists that can be used to make the collection process easier and ensure that all pertinent documents are carefully gathered.

Documents that you need to include in your investor data room could differ based on the specific situation and the transaction, however a few core documents are essential for every data room:

Legal Information: This includes articles of incorporation, intellectual property registrations, and employee stock agreements. It also includes the cap table, which breaks down ownership stakes as well as percentages of your company. Founders may also decide pop over to this website to include previous updates to investors, which show investors that they care about investor communication and transparency.

Financial Information This includes the financial statements of the past and the future and provides sources, assumptions and the rationale behind those projections. Founders can include their product roadmap and business plan.

Founders may choose to divide the investor data room and limit access by assigning different users roles. For instance, a section might contain documents for strategy and pitch decks which will be available to investors at the beginning of their journey, while another section will have more detailed legal documents for investors who are more serious. This lets them save time by sharing only documents that they need, and gives them more control over how sensitive information is shared.