Founders, if a buyer asked for your metrics tomorrow, could your data prove your financial performance or would holes in it kill the deal?

In episode #388, Ben Murray breaks down the metrics acquirers use to underwrite your SaaS business — and why so many exits fail before they start. Due diligence is about de-risking the acquisition, and buyers with deep bench strength will pour through your data looking for weaknesses. If you can't control the financial narrative with accurate, defensible metrics, they'll write it for you — and your valuation will pay the price.

• The four metric pillars buyers scrutinize in due diligence — retention quality, growth, capital efficiency, and margin architecture — and why retention is still king.
• The GRR threshold many private equity firms treat as a hard floor (hint: it's 90%) and why the gap between GRR and NRR matters for every recurring revenue stream.
• Why two companies with the same Rule of 40 score get very different valuations — and which composition earns the premium.
• The capital efficiency metrics on the exam — burn multiple, CAC payback, ARR per FTE — and how go-to-market efficiency changes how much capital a buyer must invest post-acquisition.
• Why AI-native margins are rotating back to 70–80% software expectations, and how a correctly structured SaaS P&L lets you explain your margin by revenue stream.
• The minimum runway Ben recommends for exit prep — 6 months of data foundation work — so you hand buyers numbers you're confident in.

Tune in before your next investor conversation — because if you're eyeing an exit in the next year or two, the data prep starts now.

Resources Mentioned

• Ben's SaaS Exit Readiness blog post: https://www.thesaascfo.com/saas-exit-readiness-score/
• Contact Ben for exit-ready services: https://www.thesaascfo.com/contact/