{
  "title": "How to Become a Business Advisor in M&A: Skills, Credentials and Pay",
  "url": "https://acquisitions.com/blog/how-to-become-a-business-advisor/",
  "author": "Moran Pober",
  "publisher": "Acquisitions.com",
  "published": "2026-10-23",
  "updated": "2026-10-23",
  "section": "Becoming an advisor",
  "keyword": "how to become a business advisor",
  "short_answer": "A business advisor in M&A helps owners sell companies and helps buyers find and close acquisitions. They are paid a retainer plus a success fee at closing. You need financial analysis, deal process and sales skills. A credential such as the CM&AA, CBI or CEPA helps but is not required. Most advisors start inside a firm or an advisor network, learn on five to ten deals, then specialise.",
  "facts": {
    "CM&AA, Certified Merger & Acquisition Advisor": [
      "Alliance of M&A Advisors (AM&AA)",
      "Middle-market corporate finance, valuation, deal structure, tax and legal issues in M&A",
      "A 40 CPE-hour course, virtual or in person, with an online exam; the body prefers candidates with a degree or a designation such as CPA or CFA and considers M&A experience; 4 hours of CPE a year and AM&AA membership to keep it"
    ],
    "CBI, Certified Business Intermediary": [
      "International Business Brokers Association (IBBA)",
      "Main Street and lower-middle-market business brokerage: recasting, pricing, marketing, closing",
      "IBBA membership, one IBBA conference, 68 credit hours of coursework and a three-hour exam passed at 70% or higher in each section, within three years; a tenured route for experienced brokers"
    ],
    "CEPA, Certified Exit Planning Advisor": [
      "Exit Planning Institute (EPI)",
      "Preparing an owner and a business for a sale years in advance: value, personal readiness, the exit itself",
      "A five-day virtual program and an online proctored closed-book exam, listed by FINRA; 40 hours of continuing education every three years"
    ]
  },
  "sources": [
    "https://amaaonline.com/cmaa/",
    "https://amaaonline.com/maintaining-your-cmaa/",
    "https://www.ibba.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/CBI-Policy.pdf",
    "https://www.finra.org/investors/professional-designations/cepa",
    "https://exit-planning-institute.org/exit-planning-certification-comparison",
    "https://www.bizben.com/blog/how-much-do-brokers-charge-to-sell-a-business/",
    "https://exitpromise.com/lehman-scale/",
    "https://sidley.com/en/insights/newsupdates/2023/03/us-congress-exempts-certain-merger-and-acquisition-brokers-from-sec-broker-dealer-registration"
  ],
  "license": "Facts may be quoted with attribution to Acquisitions.com and a link to the url above."
}