Legal

Confidentiality & Non-Circumvention

Last updated: 4 August 2026

Our work only functions if two things are true at the same time: you can tell us what you are really looking for, and we can introduce you to someone without losing our position in the transaction. This page explains how both are protected, and what we will ask you to sign before an introduction is made.

We publish it because we would rather you read it now, calmly, than negotiate it later under time pressure with a live opportunity on the table.

What we protect on your side

From the first conversation, your identity, your intentions and your documents are treated as confidential. In practice that means:

We do not disclose that you are buying, selling, raising or divesting to anyone without your consent.
We approach the market on a no-names basis first. A counterparty learns who you are only once you have agreed to be identified to that specific party.
Documents you give us are shared only with parties you have approved, and only to the extent required at that stage.
We do not use your mandate as a reference, a case study or a marketing example unless you have agreed to it in writing.

Confidentiality survives the end of the engagement. It does not expire because a mandate did not proceed.

Staged disclosure

Information is released in steps, not all at once. A typical sequence is: an anonymous outline of the opportunity; then, once genuine interest is expressed and confidentiality is signed, the identity of the party; then the substantive material. Each step requires your approval before the next one begins.

This is deliberate. It means an approach that goes nowhere costs you nothing in exposure — which is what allows us to test the market broadly on your behalf rather than cautiously.

The three documents

There are only three, and each exists for one reason.

Mutual Non-Disclosure Agreement. Signed before any substantive conversation. It protects information flowing in both directions and is deliberately short.
Non-Circumvention & Non-Disclosure Agreement. Signed before we make an introduction. It adds the commitment not to bypass us with a party we have brought to you.
Introduction Record. Signed or acknowledged at the moment of introduction. It simply records who was introduced to whom, and on what date.

Copies are available on request at any point in the discussion, including before you have decided to engage us.

What non-circumvention actually means

The term sounds defensive, so it is worth stating plainly what it does and does not cover.

It covers the specific parties we introduce to you, together with their affiliates, group companies and the individuals connected to them — because a commitment that names only one legal entity is trivially avoided by using another one in the same group. It applies for a defined period after the introduction, and it applies regardless of the form the transaction eventually takes: an asset purchase instead of a share purchase, a joint venture instead of a sale, a licence instead of an acquisition. The economics of our fee do not change because the structure changed.

It does not cover parties you already knew. If you had a documented relationship with a counterparty before we introduced it, tell us and we will exclude it in writing at the outset. We would rather narrow the agreement at the start than argue about it at completion.

Why this protects you too

An intermediary who is not protected behaves defensively. They withhold names, delay introductions, and manage the process to preserve their position rather than to close the transaction. That costs the client time and optionality.

Because our position is secured contractually, we can do the opposite: introduce early, share context openly, put you directly in the room with the decision maker, and step back once the parties are talking. The agreement is what makes that possible.

What we ask of you

Tell us at the outset which counterparties you already know, so we can exclude them.
Route contact with an introduced party through us until the parties have formally engaged, or tell us when you would prefer to take it direct.
Let us know if a transaction with an introduced party proceeds in a different form, or through a different entity in your group.
Do not send confidential transaction details in a first unsolicited message. Tell us the shape of the matter and we will put confidentiality in place before the detail moves.

Handling and security

Access to mandate material is limited to those working on the engagement. Information is transmitted over encrypted channels, held only as long as there is a legal, tax or evidential reason to hold it, and returned or destroyed on request at the end of an engagement — except where we are required to retain a record of an introduction in order to evidence its origin.

How personal data specifically is handled, and the rights available to you in relation to it, are set out in our Privacy Notice.

Requesting the documents

Write to us and we will send the current versions, together with the fee structure that would apply to your matter, before you commit to anything.

This page describes our intended practice and is a general statement, not legal advice. The underlying agreements should be reviewed by a qualified adviser in the relevant jurisdiction before they are relied upon, and are subject to the terms of the signed engagement in each case.