株式会社M&Aクラウド

株式会社M&Aクラウド (M&A Cloud) is a Tokyo-based company that operates online marketplaces and advisory services for mergers, acquisitions and corporate fundraising in Japan. Its core product, the "M&Aクラウド" platform launched in April 2018, works like a job-advertising portal: acquiring companies publish their M&A strategy, track record and acquisition needs, and companies considering a sale browse those listings and approach buyers directly, or register anonymous (non-name) company information to receive scouting messages from listed buyers. The company positions the service as an industry-first "listing-type" M&A matching platform in which buyers' identities and needs are visible, allowing sellers to select and negotiate with counterparties themselves rather than through a traditional intermediary.

Around the platform the company has built additional lines of business: 資金調達クラウド (Shikin Chotatsu Cloud, launched November 2022), a platform where companies seeking capital search and message corporate investors that disclose investable amounts, timing and target sectors; M&A Cloud Advisory Partners (MACAP, launched February 2020) and Startup M&A Advisory, advisory teams staffed by professionals from investment banks, M&A intermediaries and accounting backgrounds that handle larger deals; and M&Aクラウドエージェント (launched August 2023), under which M&A advisers sign agent contracts with the company and use its data, back-office support and offices to support business-succession deals nationwide. In January 2025 the company opened the platform to intermediaries and sell-side FAs as "M&Aクラウド for アドバイザー", and in March 2025 announced NEXUS, a tool for digitalising M&A advisory workflows. The stated mission is "テクノロジーの力でM&Aに流通革命を" (bringing a distribution revolution to M&A through technology).

Founding story

The company was established on 7 December 2015. Founder 及川厚博 had started マクロパス株式会社 in 2011 while at university, building an offshore app-development business centred on Southeast Asian development bases to several hundred million yen in annual revenue, and sold that business for several hundred million yen in 2015; the difficulty of valuing the business and finding a buyer, together with his own exposure to business-succession issues, led him to found M&A Cloud to address these problems with technology. Co-founder and representative director 前川拓也 began his career at ホクレン農業協同組合連合会, launched the moremore e-commerce business in 2014 delivering surplus agricultural, livestock and marine products directly to restaurants, and sold it two years later; dissatisfaction with that sale process and the closure of his father's company without succession motivated his involvement in founding M&A Cloud.

Business model

The platform is free for sellers—no retainer, interim or success fees—while buyers pay listing fees and success fees; the company states that online acquisition of seller leads through buyer-side M&A advertising lowers operating costs enough to support this model. Buyers use the platform on a monthly-fee-free, pure success-fee basis. Optional paid support plans are offered to sellers who want professional assistance, and fee-based advisory mandates are handled through MACAP and Startup M&A Advisory. Companies raising capital via 資金調達クラウド are not charged fees. Under M&Aクラウドエージェント, contracted advisers use the company's platform, data, back-office services and offices.

Revenue comes from buyer-side listing (advertising) fees and success fees on completed transactions on the M&Aクラウド platform, optional paid seller support plans, and advisory fees from the MACAP and Startup M&A Advisory businesses.

Traction

As of November 2023 the platform generated roughly 300 matches per month, 資金調達クラウド had over 300 investing companies and over 3,000 companies seeking capital, and headcount had reached 92 (up from 45 at end-2021), with 100 expected in early 2024. Company materials cite over 3,100 registered buyers, roughly 600 companies publicly disclosing acquisition needs, over 8,900 registered sellers on M&Aクラウド and over 2,000 companies seeking capital on 資金調達クラウド. In December 2025 the free "M&Aクラウド for アドバイザー" service passed 500 supported deals. Named completed deals include Change Holdings/DFA Robotics, システム・ロケーション/Inspiration and ベビーカレンダー/Cuenext.

Latest developments

In January 2025 the company opened the platform to intermediaries and sell-side FAs as "M&Aクラウド for アドバイザー", and in March 2025 announced NEXUS, a DX tool for M&A advisory work. In April 2025 it closed an approximately JPY 510 million Series D from かんぽNEXTパートナーズ, 正栄産業 and 三菱UFJキャピタル among others, earmarked for platform development for M&A operators and adviser hiring. In December 2025 M&Aクラウド for アドバイザー passed 500 supported deals, and in April 2026 the company announced a change of representative director and management structure.