Godfrey M. Bakuli
Verified Expert in Finance
Finance Expert
New York, NY, United States
Toptal member since March 21, 2019
Starting his career at Morgan Stanley, Godfrey has worked with both startups and large enterprises on $6 billion of strategic assignments. In 12+ years, this advisory has included M&A, divestitures, and equity and debt financings. Last year alone, he helped startups in the data center, transportation, drone infrastructure, and CPG spaces raise $14 million. Godfrey freelances as a means to broaden his network and deepen his industry knowledge.
Career Highlights
Education Highlights
Case Studies
M&A Assessment for a Private Company
Five-year DCF Valuation for a Privately Held Business
Expertise
- Equity Research
- Financial Modeling
- Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A)
- Forecasting
- Industry Analysis
- Investment Research
- Security Analysis
- Startups
Work Experience
Head of Business and Investment Research
Bionic Solution, LLC
- Advised Fortune 100 companies on creating, acquiring, and scaling businesses around disruptive innovations.
- Acted as interim CFO for startups within Johnson & Johnson, TD Ameritrade, Procter & Gamble, and other firms; raised $14.3 million.
- Devised an investment rationale for Procter & Gamble in a women’s health area and advised on the acquisition of a $200 million target.
- Led cross-functional team members in conducting competitive landscape research, market sizing and structural analysis, and business and financial modeling; grew the team from one to five members.
Founder | Managing Partner
Mutoro Group, LLC
- Founded an investment firm with personal capital and with external backing, grew fund 31% in 5 years (vs. 20% for hedge fund peers).
- Researched businesses, analyzed regulatory filings, and interviewed industry sources to understand companies’ unit economics, management, FCF generation, business model, competitive positioning, financial condition, and profitability prospects.
- Employed a fundamental value investment process to identify companies with a high return on invested capital being sold at significant discounts to their long-term intrinsic values.
- Launched a firm blog, Notes & Letters, and grew the readership to 3,000 in five years.
Partner | Chief Financial Officer
Connor Capital SB, LLC
- Co-founded $35-million fund investing in transportation, technology, and infrastructure.
- Fielded inbound acquisition opportunities and wrote memoranda justifying investments.
- Negotiated and managed contracts with team of 20 across legal, banking, regulatory, administration, technology, and audit.
- Built financial and operational infrastructure, including acquisition models and economic models for budget and cash flows.
Investment Professional
Sageview Capital, LP
- Performed strategic, operational, and financial due diligence on technology, consumer, and digital media companies for a fund with $1 billion in assets under management in public and private markets.
- Built models to analyze unit economics, relative/intrinsic valuation, credit metrics, and earnings forecasts.
- Created the strategy and FP&A for an entertainment technology services company.
- Developed an M&A pipeline and cash flow management processes for a distressed B2B portfolio company with $75 million in revenue and significant leverage.
Investment Banker
Morgan Stanley
- Advised management of transportation and infrastructure firms on $6 billion in financial and strategic advisory assignments, including mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, corporate defense activities, and equity and debt financings.
- Managed a team of eight in preparing Excel-based financial models, due diligence checklists, transaction documentation, and C-suite and board of director presentations.
- Worked on a variety of transactions including the Continental and United Airlines Merger ($3 billion), Spirit Airlines IPO ($900 million), Swift Transportation IPO ($800 million), and the JetBlue sale of 19% to Lufthansa ($300 million).
Education
Bachelor's Degree in Economics and History
Williams College - Williamstown, MA, USA
Skills
Finance
Data Analysis, Capital Budgeting, Corporate Finance, Value Investing, Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Fund Formation, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Private Equity, Financial Reporting, Market Research, M&A (Buy-side), Financial Modeling, Forecasting, Equity Research, Credit Analysis, Fundraising, Financial Advisory, CFO, Minority Investments, Investment Memoranda, Fund Management, International Finance, Corporate Treasury, Investment Thesis, Investment Monitoring, Equity Offerings, Valuation Analysis, Debt Structuring, Debt Restructuring, DCF Valuation, P&L Forecasting
Output Software
Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word
Industry Expertise
Aircraft & Airlines, Financial Services, Consumer Products, Public Companies, Food & Beverage, Capital Markets, Logistics, Restaurants & Dining, Automotive, Healthcare
Geographic Expertise
United States, European Union (EU)
Data & Analysis Software
Capital IQ
Other
Startups, Capital Allocation, Client Relations, Investment Research, Management, Board Presentations, Writing & Editing, Investing, Company Research, Industry Analysis, Value Chain, Startup Consulting, Fortune Global 500, Public Speaking, Mentorship & Coaching, Market Sizing, Subscriptions, Benchmarking, Security Analysis, Treasury Management, Direct to Consumer (D2C), Pitch Books, Financial Statements, Competitive Intelligence, Modeling
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