Adversity and disruption often drive change and innovation. Aside from the losses it inflicted, COVID forced businesses to adopt changes that would have taken years under normal conditions. We saw companies adapt their business models to the digital economy, redefine supply chains, compress product development cycles, and reimagine scalable infrastructures. Many teamed up with institutional capital providers to acquire competitors, emerging stronger than ever before.
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The M&A market was, in some ways, ground zero to observe this extraordinary transformation. We saw clients grow at unprecedented rates and realize liquidity at record valuations as M&A activity exploded.
Looking back at the first half of 2021, I am grateful to our clients for letting us play a role in this extraordinary chapter, I am proud of the superhuman effort and commitment that our Intrepid team has shown in delivering for our clients, and I am deeply saddened at the pain, loss, and suffering that so many endured.
With these mixed emotions, I share some of our accomplishments in the first half of the year.
Intrepid welcomed 19 new team members, including:
- 15 analysts from UCLA, USC, University of Michigan, Princeton, Northwestern, Johns Hopkins, Elon, and University of Illinois;
- Five interns from UCLA, USC, Stanford, and Wharton;
- Steven Nelson joined as Managing Director and Head of Sponsor Coverage (Wells Fargo Securities);
- Jessica Chia, a former editor at Allure, joined our Beauty & Personal Care banking team; and
- Stuart Jones joined as Associate (Stanford University, Wells Fargo Securities, Navy Seals).
We closed 16 transactions, a record for the first half of the year, and several of our bankers were recognized for their achievements by the Los Angeles Business Journal and Los Angeles Times.
- We are executing the highest deal pipeline in our history.
- Our industry practices gained great momentum, accounting for 90% of the deals closed in 2021.
We continue to look for great talent who embraces our cultural values. We would be grateful for introductions to bankers with deep industry experience, particularly in Healthcare, Software, and Industrials.
Thank you for being a valued member of the Intrepid community and wish you and your families health and prosperity.
Ed Bagdasarian, CEO