Frequently asked questions

Practical answers on transaction diligence and how aiassure fits into your workflow. For deeper dives, visit our blog.

What is financial due diligence?

Financial due diligence is the buyer's structured review of a target company's historical financial performance, quality of earnings, working capital, debt, and related risks before closing an M&A transaction. The goal is to validate the seller's narrative, surface normalization issues, and inform purchase price, structure, and post-close planning.

What is a Quality of Earnings (QoE) analysis?

A Quality of Earnings analysis evaluates how sustainable and repeatable reported earnings are, typically by building an EBITDA bridge from reported results to a normalized view. Buyers use QoE to separate one-time items, owner-related expenses, accounting policy changes, and run-rate adjustments from the earnings base that will support debt service and valuation after close.

What is a working capital peg?

A working capital peg is the agreed normalized net working capital level at closing, often compared to a trailing average (for example, 12 months). If actual closing NWC is below the peg, the buyer may receive a dollar-for-dollar purchase price adjustment. If above, the seller may receive additional consideration. Peg disputes usually turn on which accounts belong in NWC and how seasonality is treated.

How long does financial due diligence take?

Timelines vary by deal size and scope. A quick look on a clean lower-middle-market asset might run two to three weeks. A full QoE with tax, debt, and extended modules often runs four to eight weeks. Delays usually come from incomplete request lists, late document delivery, or unresolved management questions, not from the analytics themselves.

What documents are typically requested in diligence?

Core financial packages include trial balances, general ledger detail, monthly financials, AR/AP aging, inventory listings, debt schedules, cap table or equity records, tax returns, and management forecasts. Extended diligence adds customer contracts, payroll registers, fixed asset schedules, insurance policies, and industry-specific items such as WIP schedules or SaaS cohort data.

How does aiassure keep AI under CPA control?

aiassure separates deterministic calculations (EBITDA bridges, NWC, DSO/DIO/DPO, concentration) from AI-assisted extraction and narrative. Findings live on a first-class risk register (severity, evidence, status). AI can propose adjustments and draft commentary, but mappings, adjustments, partner sign-off, and report lock require human approval. There is no AI bulk-approve finalize. Every mutation is audited and evidence can be linked to source documents.

Where do red flags and issues live?

On the Findings hub, the engagement risk register. Red flags, open issues, management questions, and deal-breakers are filterable pages with evidence links. Sessions (Eve) can summarize and deep-link into Findings, but chat is never the only place the register lives.

Is my deal data secure in aiassure?

aiassure is built as a multi-tenant firm workspace with role-based access, org-level isolation, and audit logging on sensitive actions. Deal data is stored in encrypted infrastructure. Retention policies can be configured at the org level. We do not use your confidential deal files to train public models.

Who is aiassure for?

aiassure is designed for CPA firms, transaction advisory teams, and corporate development groups running QoE, working capital, and transaction diligence. Industry scope packs cover manufacturing, distribution, software/SaaS, healthcare, construction, restaurants, and services, with modules that turn on per deal.

How much does aiassure cost?

Plans start at $999 per month for solo practitioners (1 to 3 deals per year) and scale to Team ($2,499/mo) and Firm ($5,999/mo) for higher deal volume. Enterprise pricing is available for 25+ deals per year. Visit the pricing page for tier details and a savings calculator that compares monthly subscription cost to typical outsourced CPA diligence fees.

What are common EBITDA adjustments in diligence?

Common add-backs include excess owner compensation, personal expenses run through the business, one-time legal or restructuring costs, non-recurring bad debt, and facility moves. Buyers also scrutinize run-rate adjustments for new contracts or lost customers, pro forma synergies claimed by the seller, and capitalization policy changes that inflate EBITDA without true cash impact.

Why does customer concentration matter in diligence?

Customer concentration measures revenue dependence on a small number of accounts. High concentration increases earnings volatility and counterparty risk. Lost contracts can move EBITDA quickly. Diligence teams validate contract terms, renewal history, pricing, related-party revenue, and whether top customers are truly independent.