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Effective pre-liquidity planning is always important for a business owner considering a business sale, exit, or other transaction. But several recent and upcoming developments—related to estate laws, small-business tax exemptions, residency trends, philanthropic endeavors, and high interest rates—make 2024 a uniquely challenging year. This article ...

While the market for private sales has slowed, private equity companies have record amounts of dry powder they need to put to work—for the right companies, this may be the ideal time to explore a business sale or capital raise. In this podcast episode of Business Insights, Terry Hill, Partner in BPM’s Advisory Practice, is joined by Tara Smith Kach...

Today’s heightened geopolitical risk environment—characterized by volatility, uncertainty, and a widening range of possible outcomes—has become a more significant driver of operational and strategic risks to trade, finance, and investment than in prior periods. Drawing on the comprehensive World Risk Review analysis of 197 countries and territories...

Enhancing risk management is no longer optional but essential when the global landscape is fraught with uncertainties and disruptions that include changing business dynamics, shifting trade tensions, a tough tariff environment, geopolitical conflicts, and a volatile economic landscape. Building resilience across all aspects of the business is imper...

Safety risk assessments are becoming a preferred regulatory tool around the world. Online safety laws in Australia, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the United States will require a range of providers to evaluate the safety and user-generated content risks associated with their online services. While the specific assessment requirements vary across...

The list of compounding emergencies – both natural disasters and beyond – that we face today seems increasingly difficult to manage. A resilient family office is able to efficiently lead through crisis, recover essential family office functions, leverage lessons learned, and continuously improve their capabilities. Though practical guidance abounds...

Entrepreneurs and business owners often put off wealth planning because they’re so busy with their businesses. Yet, wealth planning is a crucial part of protecting everything they’ve worked so hard for. That’s because their personal and business finances can be interconnected, but they aren’t always at the same stage of growth. This guide by BMO ou...

As a subset of estate planning, asset protection is an important part of a family office’s risk management strategy. In this video, Chris Mays and Craig Redler discuss various strategies for asset protection, particularly for individuals and businesses facing potential legal claims and financial risks. They explore different structures such as trus...

New cybersecurity guidance for artificial intelligence (AI) systems was issued jointly by the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the FBI, the National Security Agency’s Artificial Intelligence Security Center, and cybersecurity agencies of Australia, New Zealand, the U.K., and Canada. The Guidelines, Deploying AI Systems Securel...

For board members and non-executive directors, generative AI stands as a pivotal innovation that offers unprecedented opportunities to drive business value, improve productivity, reach broader audiences, streamline operations, and help address complicated global issues. However, it also raises complex business and ethical questions. To gain the ful...

For business owners and their advisors, it’s probably not surprising that buying another company or other assets requires moving with speed and diligence. But gaining an edge—and winning—on the buy side is a bit more complicated. Effective companies tend to deploy a series of purposeful tactics and avoid common mistakes when pursuing acquisitions. ...

In this 10-minute interview, attorney Lindsey Birch of Foley & Lardner joins Brian Lucareli to discuss art ownership. During the interview, Lindsey explained what constitutes ownership of art, what to look for when acquiring fine art or artifacts, insurance protection, and the steps that can be taken to mitigate any future risks regarding title...

Preparing yourself and your family can be one of the most overlooked parts of a business sale and exit strategy. But it goes beyond maximizing tax efficiency and unlocking newfound wealth—it’s a monumental transition filled with emotional considerations. This article outlines key questions and critical areas of considerations for business owners an...

“You only sell your company once” is a phrase founder/family-owned business leaders often hear before embarking on a major liquidity event. It demonstrates the enormity of the undertaking to effectively sell a business. Ensuring your company is prepared for a sale is crucial to any exit strategy, and should be considered long before beginning a sal...

While business continuity planning and good crisis management are important, organizational resilience encompasses much more. An integrated approach to resilience provides organizations a competitive advantage over less-prepared peers, as well as the ability to adapt to constantly changing external circumstances. Organizations would be well-served ...