A founder first
Before advising on other people's exits, Yi Chen built his own. He started with $700, went on to build multiple businesses across various sectors, and has been through an exit himself, so he has sat on the founder's side of the table.
In M&A since 2014
Yi Chen has worked in M&A since 2014. From 2018 to 2023 he was at Nihon M&A, and in 2023 he started his own boutique. Today he is co-founder of Growth Alliance Capital, a sell-side M&A adviser for founder-led companies in Singapore and Southeast Asia.
How he thinks about a sale
A buyer doesn't pay for what you earned. They pay for what they can confirm will continue after you leave.
The day-1 cheque is the number. Everything else is a negotiation you haven't started.
Both lines are from his own writing on LinkedIn. More of his thinking is in the founder guides.
Built with technology
Yi Chen founded Aye Bot, the AI deal engine that maps the buyer market and keeps every number in a sale process traceable. The engine does the hours; the judgement stays with the adviser across the table.
Founders tell their own stories
Yi Chen prefers that the founders he has helped exit tell their own stories. Any testimonial that appears on this site is published only with that founder's consent.