Closing is the moment a transaction legally completes, when funds are transferred, documents are executed, and ownership of the business formally changes hands.

Closing is the finish line of a transaction process that typically runs three to nine months from initial offer to completion. On closing day, the purchase and sale agreement becomes effective, the purchase price is paid according to the agreed mechanism, whether by wire transfer, holdback, or vendor take-back, and the shares or assets transfer to the buyer. What looked like a deal in a letter of intent becomes a legally binding reality at closing.

The period between signing the purchase and sale agreement and closing, sometimes the same day, often weeks apart, is where final conditions are satisfied: regulatory approvals, third-party consents, financing conditions, and the delivery of closing deliverables. Deals that are agreed in principle and then fall apart between signing and closing are almost always the result of a condition that was not properly understood or managed during the negotiation phase

Getting to closing is the outcome that every stage of the sale process is building toward. See how Wefinx approaches exit planning.

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