An Interview With

John Ashburne,

Lead Principal

Black Horse Advisors

What is Black Horse All About?

Our mission is helping companies to find and negotiate the best sources of capital possible so that they can expand and grow their businesses and create more wealth for their shareholders. We specialize in small to medium capitalization companies but we apply our more than 25 years' experience in financing companies of all sizes to ensure best practices are used to help our clients achieve the best results possible even in these challenging times.

What is the Black Horse Philosophy?

Black Horse does not sell anything other than our brains, our experience, our knowledge of financial markets, our creativity and our extensive contacts with capital providers. We are firm believers in a holistic and analytical approach to solving problems, measuring value and assessing market-based proposals to make sure that our client achieves the highest value-added possible for its shareholders. We work for you to identify and arrange the financing that best suits your objectives, not the "product du jour" that larger firms are incentivized to push in a "one size fits all" effort to push product out the door. We are totally product and market neutral as to financing product and source and so we can be completely objective in identifying what makes the most sense for you based on the characteristics of your company, your priorities and market conditions.

Why Hire Black Horse?

In a word, Service. When you hire Black Horse you are hiring someone who is dedicated solely to working for your best interests and only your best interests. If we make a proposal to provide services to you, you can be assured that you become a top priority for us 24/7 and our number one objective is making sure that we have a happy client. We will not overbook ourselves or stretch ourselves too thin because we will not compromise our focus on On-Demand Real Time service for you.

What Other Reasons Are There to Hire Black Horse?

Understanding Client Needs

  • Several years experience on the corporate side of the negotiating table
  • We listen more than we talk so that we first understand what keeps you awake at night and then we can formulate a solution to your problem
  • We think like an owner of the business so we are aligned with your objectives
  • Knowledge of Market Conditions
  • Track financings daily for real time market prices, terms and sources
  • Continually in touch with financial industry contacts

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    Complete Objectivity

  • No "products" to sell for the sales desk
  • No conflicts of interest to affect our recommendations
  • Meeting your objectives is how we measure our success, no matter what

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    Global Experience

  • Been there, done that through several market and commodity price cycles
  • More than $17 billion in capital raised in global markets
  • Deal sizes from $5 million to more than $1 billion

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    Problem Solving Ability and Creativity

  • Quantitative analytical approach
  • Ability to match client needs with investor risk and reward profile
  • Strategic thinker
  • Creative solutions to drive the market, not just follow someone else

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    Value Added Results

  • Results that are quantifiably better than they would be without our assistance
  • Our value added is reflected in basis points saved on a financing, fewer restrictive covenants, more stable cash flows or a higher price achieved on a sale
  • Running a competitive bidding process and keeping multiple providers of capital in the hunt helps to make sure that the deal you get is the best deal possible

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    What Do You Charge for Your Work?

    Black Horse will make a proposal to work for you that is sensitive to your need to manage cash and costs realistically. Our fee proposal will be tailored specifically for the nature of the work that is to be done and could be an hourly rate, a monthly retainer, a success fee or some combination of all of those methods. Where possible, we try to structure our fees so that your success is our success. In this way, we achieve an alignment of your interests with our interests so that the better the deal is for you, the better it is for us. The key is that we will balance your needs to spend your money wisely with our desire to pay our rent so that the result is delivery of true value added for you and a win-win arrangement for both of us.

    How Can I Find Out More?

    That's easy! Give us a call or send us an email to set up a meeting or a conference call to discuss what your needs are and to determine if we can help you meet those needs. There is no cost or obligation for this consultation and we will be quick and honest in letting you know whether we think that we can add value for you.