Running the Business While Selling It: Preserving Value in a Distressed M&A Process

A fireside chat from the 2026 Distressed Investing Summit (Deal Forum, Four Seasons Resort, Palm Beach, FL).

When a business hits distress, the panic is immediate. Nobody knows how much cash is left, who's in charge, or what they owe. In this candid panel, a CRO, an investment banker, a private equity buyer, and a restructuring attorney break down how to keep a company running while you sell it, and how to find the value hidden inside a struggling business. They cover the psychology of displaced management, why "go find a buyer" is often the wrong first move, and the real case where they cut 90% of customers and still extended runway by 30 days.

In this episode:

Why every distressed situation is paced by liquidityThe psychology of parachuting in and why management fears the CROGetting independent directors, bankers, and a CRO in without breaking trustThe case study: shrinking a customer base by 90% to maximize asset valueGetting discontinued customers to fund 30 extra days of the sale processWhy restructuring the balance sheet without fixing P&L and liquidity failsLogo chasing vs. contribution margin, the KPI missing from the deckHow fiduciary duty shifts from equity value to employees when checks stopWhen a banker says no, and why good bankers now decline dealsSale process vs. new value plan vs. sponsor keeping the equityWhat a distressed buyer actually looks for in a business with hair on itBuying the debt, credit bidding, and partnering with secured lendersChapter 11 vs. Article 9 vs. receivership vs. 363, and why Ch. 11 is often the worst outcome for a buyerOut of court math: payables, change of control contracts, and net to the houseAudience Q&A: assessing incumbent management in week one, and the remote work red flag

Chapters:

00:01 Setting the stage: panic, cash blindness, fiduciary confusion01:56 Getting a CRO or FA in when lenders drive the bus06:28 The psychology of parachuting in07:35 Case study: value in the footprint and assets, not EBITDA09:53 Firing 90% of customers and funding 30 extra days12:50 Why the third restructuring was needed14:45 Logo chasing vs. margin KPIs15:56 Fiduciary duty when you stop cutting checks22:42 Why bankers decline deals26:35 What a distressed buyer looks for29:30 Chapter 11 vs. Article 9 vs. receivership vs. 36333:50 Q&A: management is not a bystander37:24 The remote work red flag

The panel:

Sandeep Gupta, Managing Partner, Novo AdvisorsMike Ragano, Partner, Novo AdvisorsGeoffrey Richards, Co-Head of Capital Structure Advisory, Raymond JamesBrian McGee, Managing Partner, New Water CapitalRob Dehney Sr., Partner, Morris, Nichols, Arsht & TunnellHost: Roger Aguinaldo, Founder and CEO, The M&A Advisor

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