TORRANCE, Calif. – Organizers of Agent Entrepreneur Experience announced that Gina Cocking, managing director and CEO at Colonnade Advisors will present "The Pace of M&A" on Wednesday, May 26. Kicking off Day Three of the virtual event, the session begins at 12:00 p.m. EST/9:00 a.m. PST. Agents are invited to register at no cost.

M&A is top of mind for many in the industry as we continue to see significant investor and buyer interest.

In recent years, M&A activity for F&I agencies has grown significantly. "The Pace of M&A" will review the trends fueling M&A activity, how deals are valued and structured, recent transactions, the transaction process, and factors that may cause deals to fail to close.

"M&A is top of mind for many in the industry as we continue to see significant investor and buyer interest," Cocking said. "I look forward to discussing the current M&A environment in the F&I industry at AE Experience.”

Gina Cocking began her career in investment banking at Kidder Peabody, was an analyst at Madison Dearborn Partners and an associate at J.P. Morgan & Co. From 1999 to 2003, she was a VP at Colonnade Advisors, but later left to gain operating experience as the CFO of Cobalt Finance, a specialty finance company. Cocking went on to become the CFO of Healthcare Laundry Systems, a private-equity backed company for which she oversaw the successful sale to a strategic acquirer; she then served as the Line of Business CFO – Consumer Banking and Lending at Discover Financial Services. In 2014, Cocking returned to Colonnade Advisors as a Managing Director. 

Agent Entrepreneur Experience was founded on the principle that automotive general agents are the engine of the auto retail and finance industry, driving profits for dealers and F&I product providers while helping protect car buyers from undue financial distress. AE Experience is designed by and for the hardworking professionals driving F&I success and dealership profitability across the nation. For more information or to register today, visit AgentEntrepreneurExperience.com. 

READ: AE Experience Announces Hard-Hitting Panel Lineup