For owners who care what happens next.
Accendev acquires owner-led businesses and holds them for the long term. No fund lifecycle. No resale horizon.
Every inquiry is received directly by Adam Kerdani. Ottawa, Canada.
A single owner, not a fund
The absence of a fund is not a philosophy. It is a practical difference in what can be decided after closing.
Investment can be made on a ten-year view rather than a three-year one. Good people can be carried through a slow year. Nothing has to be dressed for resale on someone else’s schedule, because there is no schedule.
For some owners, price is the only question that matters. This is built for the others.
Adam Kerdani, CD, MBA
Accendev is a private holding company founded by Adam Kerdani to acquire owner-led businesses and hold them for the long term. There is no fund behind it and no investment committee. The person an owner speaks to first is the person who will own the business afterward.
He spent fifteen years as a commissioned officer in the Canadian Armed Forces. As a Naval Warfare Officer he was responsible for the safety of a warship and its crew on independent and multinational deployments. As an Army Intelligence Officer he provided decision support and risk assessment to senior commanders, work that came down to reaching defensible conclusions from incomplete information where the cost of being wrong was high. He received the Chief of the Defence Staff Commendation for leadership on deployment with Task Force Niger and was ranked first nationally for promotion to Major among more than seventy candidates.
Before and between periods of service he worked in investment banking, commercial real estate, and derivatives trading, including a period running transaction structuring and compliance at a Toronto corporate finance firm, where he managed more than fifteen transactions concurrently. Since leaving the Forces he has advised private and multinational companies in Canada and internationally on organizational structure, acquisition strategy, and capital discipline.
He serves as Board Director and Treasurer of the Veteran Business Network Institute and on the Finance Committee of the Rideau Club in Ottawa, and has served on the boards of two United States healthcare acquisition platforms. He holds an MBA with Great Distinction from HEC Montréal, is completing the ICD-Rotman Directors Education Program, and has completed executive programs at Oxford Saïd and NYU Stern.
The intention with any business Accendev acquires is plain: keep it, invest in it, and leave the people who run it to run it.
The questions owners actually ask
These come up in almost every first conversation. The answers are here so they do not have to be.
What happens to my people?
The team stays. In businesses of this kind, the people who know how something works are usually the people who make it work, and removing them destroys the thing that was bought. There is no integration plan, because there is nothing to integrate into.
What happens to the name?
It stays. The business continues under its own name, its own leadership, and its own identity. A change would only ever follow a specific commercial reason and a conversation with the people running the business.
What changes in the first year?
As little as possible. The first year is spent understanding the business rather than restructuring it. Where something does need to change, it is worked out with the people running the business rather than announced to them.
How is the purchase financed?
Through a combination of personal capital, vendor financing, and outside investment, with the mix depending on the size and shape of the transaction. The structure is put on the table early rather than late. An owner taking back paper is lending to the buyer, and is entitled to understand exactly who they are lending to and on what terms.
How long does this take?
From a first conversation to closing, usually six to twelve months, and longer where an owner wants more time. Nothing about this needs to move faster than the owner and the family are ready to move.
What if I want to stay involved?
That is a normal outcome rather than an exception. Some owners want full liquidity at closing and a clean break. Others want a transition period, retained equity, or a continuing role in something they built. Structure follows the situation.
What if we talk and nothing comes of it?
Then nothing comes of it, and the conversation stays between the two people who had it. Discussions and identities are not publicized, and a non-disclosure agreement can be put in place before any confidential detail is shared.
I advise the owner. What should I know?
That the process is short and the answers are direct. Accendev is a single buyer rather than a fund, financing is discussed at the first substantive meeting rather than held back, and there is no auction to manage. If the fit is not there, you will hear that quickly rather than after three months of diligence.
Where this is most likely to fit
A narrow set of businesses, assessed carefully and without hurry.
Products or services where a customer would face serious operational, compliance, safety, or security consequences if delivery stopped, and could not find a comparable substitute quickly
Defence, security, dual-use technology, and technical services. Adjacent sectors are considered where a business fits on every other count
Revenue typically between $2M and $25M, with EBITDA of roughly $500K or more. Exceptions where durability or continuity risk is unusually high
Recurring, contractual, or otherwise durable revenue, with established operations and a real reputation in a defined niche
Owner-led or closely held, where succession, transition, or long-term continuity has become a real question rather than a distant one
Primarily Canada. Businesses with capabilities of strategic relevance to allied defence and security considered selectively
The criteria are guides, not a formula. The decisive question is whether continuity is consequential, the business is durable, and Accendev is the right long-term owner.
Direct, serious, and without drama
You do not need to have made a decision. It is enough that the question of succession has become real.
A first conversation
Thirty minutes, direct and confidential, covering the business, the timing, and what a good outcome would look like from your side. No preparation required and no obligation on either side.
An early read on fit
Whether there is real alignment, strategically, financially, and personally. If the fit is not there, you will be told so clearly and early rather than left in a process.
A structure built around your priorities
Full liquidity at closing, a transition period, retained involvement, or a combination. The starting point is what matters most to you, not a template.
A careful process
Run discreetly, without unnecessary disruption to the business, its customers, or its people. No broad auction and no layers of intermediaries.
Begin a private conversation
Whether you are considering succession, exploring a gradual transition, or simply want to understand whether there may be a fit, the first step does not need to be complicated.
Every inquiry is received directly by Adam Kerdani and held in confidence. No intake team.
A 30-minute call with Adam Kerdani
Choose a time that works for you. No preparation required.
Send a note. Adam will follow up directly.
All inquiries are treated with discretion.
Accendev Inc.
150 Elgin Street, Suite 1000
Ottawa, Ontario K2P 1L4
Canada