Private debt facility: how would you finance your future acquisitions?

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May 11, 2026

by a professional from IE Business School in Milano MI, Italia

A question for anyone who's financed acquisitions before. Would you: Raise debt deal-by-deal, sized and structured around each target as it comes, OR Put a large committed acquisition facility in place now, and draw against it as deals close? And more broadly: which lender types would you go to first (banks, private credit, unitranche, mezz)? What would you push hard on in the term sheet? And what's the one thing you wish you'd known before signing your first acquisition line? What are the pros and cos of both approaches in your experience? Curious to hear how others have approached this.
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Reply by an intermediary
in Austin, TX, USA
This really isn't an either or question. It's timing question. Private debt won't underwrite a platform without enough deal flow track record to model and analyze against. Until then you are raising deal by deal.
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Reply by a lender
from Eastern Illinois University in 900 E Diehl Rd, Naperville, IL 60563, USA
I concur with Steve. You are not going to find a large credit facility until you have acquired some businesses and have a proven track record of running them. There is not a magic number, but usually you are going to need about $2 to $4 million in EBITDA and $10 million plus in revenues before lenders will look to put a funding facility in place for future acquisitions. Initially you are going to have to acquire your first few deals with direct funding for those transactions, and you may need to use different lenders depending on how quickly you plan to move and how comfortable lenders are funding quick growth. If you would like to discuss funding options, we are a Commercial Loan Brokerage firm with direct lending relationships with over 500 institutions. We would be happy to have a discussion and go through the financing options that exist. You can reach me here or directly at redacted
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