How do I sell my construction or M&E company confidentially?
Off-market and NDA-gated. Nothing is publicly listed and nothing carries your name. Early materials use a reference code instead of your company name, buyers see identifying details only after signing an NDA you have approved by name, and you decide when your staff, clients and subcontractors are told. Many likely buyers are competitors who tender against you, so what they see, and at what stage, is controlled step by step.
What is my construction or M&E company worth?
It is priced off normalised earnings averaged over three to five years, not the peak year, because project profits are uneven. Net tangible assets are often the real anchor, and buyers look closely at order book quality, retention monies and receivables, and the BCA registration grades the company holds. Project-based contractors in Singapore typically change hands at roughly 2 to 3 times average normalised EBITDA, with up to about 4 times only for stronger businesses with competing buyers. Companies built on recurring maintenance or term contracts sit higher, at around 3 to 5 times. We give you a written valuation under NDA, for a fixed fee credited against our success fee if you sell with us.
Who buys construction and M&E companies in Singapore?
Listed Singapore contractors and engineering groups adding capability, grades or capacity, regional acquirers wanting a Singapore platform, competitors buying an order book or a specialist team, and sometimes the management team through a buyout. Maintenance-led businesses also attract facilities management groups. Strategic buyers usually pay for grades, term contracts and qualified people that take years to build, which is why approaching several quietly usually protects the price.
Do my BCA grades transfer to the buyer?
Registration grades are generally held by the company, so in a sale of shares they usually stay with it, while in a sale of the business and assets they generally do not follow automatically. Either way, the company must keep meeting the requirements behind each grade, including financial thresholds and qualified personnel, after you leave. If a grade or licence depends on you or a key engineer, a buyer will want that person retained or replaced. Confirm the position with your lawyer and BCA's current rules before going to market.
What does Clearmere charge to sell a construction or M&E company?
Our sale fee is success-based and paid on completion: no sale, no fee. A written valuation is a separate fixed fee, agreed and paid before we start, and credited in full against our success fee if you sign with us within 6 months and the sale completes. The first conversation, a short questionnaire and our written recommendation on which valuation fits are free and carry no obligation.
Why do buyers ask for earn-outs and guarantees on receivables?
Because so much of a contractor's value sits in work not yet finished and money not yet collected. Buyers commonly pay part of the price later, tied to future earnings or to the collection of receivables and retention monies, and may ask you to make good amounts that turn out to be unrecoverable. These terms are normal, but they are negotiable. What you agree to, for how long and how disputes are resolved is worth negotiating carefully, alongside the release of any personal guarantees and performance bonds you have given.
