An in-depth look at IPOs with Deloitte’s Barrett Daniels

Episode summary

On this episode host Erik Zhou welcomes Barrett Daniels, the co-leader of US IPO services at Deloitte. Drawing from his two decades of expertise in guiding companies through the IPO journey, Barrett takes us on a deep exploration of the process – from the pivotal board decision to the exhilarating moment of ringing the bell at the stock exchange. And, he notes that in many ways, the real work actually begins once the IPO is over.

Barrett also reviews the current IPO landscape and the evolving motivations behind companies opting to go public. He outlines some of the areas that he’d like to see improved in the IPO process and top considerations for companies as they look to get IPO ready (hint: it’s extremely important to have the right team in place!). He notes that organizational preparedness is of course crucial to a successful IPO - companies have to have accurate forecasting, good audit completion times, and controls in place.

If you're curious about the dynamic world of IPOs or thinking about what the process should look like for your company, this episode is a must-listen.

For more on how Brex can help companies get IPO ready, see here.

Show notes

The chaos of IPOs [4:20]
Supporting IPOs in Barrett’s way [8:05]
Shifts in rationale for IPOs [11:15]
Improving the IPO process [18:02]
An overview of the IPO process [22:15]
The intricacies of preparing for an IPO [33:50]
The world is run on Excel [42:25]

Guest bio

Barrett Daniels, IPO Services Co-Leader, Deloitte

Barrett is a US IPO Services Co-Leader at Deloitte. For the better part of the last two decades, Barrett has been focused on IPO and other transactional advisory services including assistance with well over 50 IPO and SPAC related engagements.

Barrett first joined Deloitte when his firm, Nextstep Advisory Services, an IPO advisory firm based in the Bay Area, was acquired by Deloitte. Previously, Barrett was an Operating Partner for SoftBank Investment Advisors overseeing the IPO readiness function for the Vision Fund portfolio. In addition, he was also the CFO of a SPAC – GigCapital.

Barrett has been called upon by top-tier media such as CNBC, Bloomberg, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Forbes, Fortune, Yahoo! Finance, TechCrunch, and more to provide insights on the IPO market and recent trends.

“Once the IPO is over, that’s when the real work begins in many ways, right?”

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