Sindre Talleraas Holen, Head of M&A at Visma, transformed the company into a B2B SaaS powerhouse with over 350 acquisitions. He shares the unexpected success of a cold email that led to his pivotal role. The conversation delves into the importance of local presence and cultural nuances in M&A, highlighting Visma's buyer-led strategy. Sindre emphasizes internal alignment as key to deal success and discusses the complexities of valuing SaaS companies, especially across different markets. His insights promise a roadmap for effective global M&A.
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question_answer ANECDOTE
Visma's Origin
Visma was formed in 1996 through the merger of three ERP systems.
The sale of their shipping division for €100M funded their M&A journey.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Cold Email to M&A Career
Sindre Talleraas Holen boldly emailed the CEO offering help with their IPO.
This led to the formation of Visma's M&A team.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
M&A Must-Haves
Stick to your area of expertise in M&A.
Ensure internal alignment and operational champions for deals.
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Sindre Talleraas Holen, Head of M&A at Visma In Part 1 of this two-part episode, Kison sits down with Sindre from Visma, one of Europe’s most active acquirers in the B2B SaaS space. With over 350+ acquisitions under its belt and a stronghold across Europe and Latin America, Visma has cracked the code for scaling globally while maintaining local authenticity.
Sindre shares how Visma transformed its M&A function from a two-man team to a global machine spanning 20 M&A professionals—and 16,000 employees acting as an extended sourcing engine. He walks through Visma’s origin story rooted in M&A, how a bold cold email launched his own career, and the foundational philosophies behind Visma’s buyer-led approach to deal execution.
Think You'll Learn:
The surprising power of a cold email—and how it helped launch Visma’s M&A team
Why Visma prioritizes local presence and cultural nuance in M&A sourcing and negotiation
How internal alignment and operational champions drive deal success
The three golden rules for successful M&A at Visma
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Episode Timestamps: [00:00:00] – Introduction to the Guest & Visma’s M&A History [00:03:30] – The €100M Sale That Funded Visma’s Acquisition Journey [00:05:00] – Sindre’s Bold Cold Email That Launched His M&A Career [00:09:00] – The Three Pillars of Visma’s M&A Approach [00:10:00] – Aligning Deals with Equity Story & Internal Champions [00:12:00] – Why M&A Is Always Local: Cultural & Regional Nuances [00:16:00] – Building a Global M&A Team Embedded in Each Region [00:17:30] – Trust and Cultural Dynamics in Deal-Making [00:20:00] – Evolving from Seller-Led to Buyer-Led M&A Strategy [00:21:30] – Proactive Deal Sourcing and Filtering Inbound Leads [00:27:00] – Building Trust with Local Sellers & Country-by-Country Differences [00:29:30] – Rapid Acquisitions vs. Long-Term Relationship Deals [00:31:00] – Case Example: 13-Year Dialogue Before Acquisition [00:35:00] – Country-Specific Negotiation Dynamics & Deal Structures [00:38:00] – Advice for First-Time International Buyer
M&A Science