Kendall Stafford Recognized as Investment Banker of the Year and Benchmark International Earns Cross Border Deal of the Year at M&A Advisor Awards

At the 23rd Annual M&A Advisor Awards, Kendall Stafford, Managing Partner at Benchmark International, was named Investment Banker of the Year.

This is not the first time she has won this prestigious award. She also won the award in 2018 and, in 2023, was named one of the Top 50 M&A Investment Bankers in the U.S. Before the age of 30, Kendall became a partner at Benchmark International and remains the youngest and only female partner at the firm.

Benchmark International was also honored with the award for Cross Border Deal of the Year ($10 MM to $50 MM) for the acquisition of Push Technologies SL by Cendyn.

PUSHTech is a cloud-based customer data platform (CDP) and CRM platform offering a suite of integrated products with hotel-specific functionalities, including email marketing, marketing automation, hotel CRM, guest journey automation, and sales CRM.

Cendyn catalyzes digital transformation in the hospitality industry, helping hotels drive profitability and guest loyalty. Its integrated technology platform aligns revenue, e-commerce, distribution, marketing, and sales teams with centralized data, applications, and analytics. The company has offices in the USA, UK, Paris, Singapore, and India, serving tens of thousands of customers across 143 countries.

Your Business, Our Expertise – A Winning Combination.

Cendyn is backed by Accel-KKR, a technology-focused private equity firm based in Silicon Valley. The acquisition of PUSHTech reinforces Cendyn’s dedication to growth and advancement in the CRM landscape.

The awards are presented by The M&A Advisor and are known as the Oscars of the M&A world. The winners were announced at the black-tie gala dinner celebration in New York City at the 2024 Future of Dealmaking Summit on November 19-20, 2024. Benchmark International received the award for having over nine other deals nominated.

The M&A awards serve as the industry benchmark for dealmaking excellence, recognizing the leading M&A transactions, restructurings, deal financings, products/services, firms, and professionals. This year, over 350 nominees from over 500 companies were selected as finalists.

“Congratulations to Kendall on continuing to be a game-changer in the M&A community. It is a recognition that is certainly well deserved. Also, congratulations to our team for being rewarded for their hard work in achieving Cross Border Deal of the Year and going above and beyond on every deal we complete,” said Steven Keane, Chairman of Benchmark International.

The M&A Advisor was founded in 1998 with a focus on mergers & acquisitions and today is the leading organization that recognizes excellence and achievement among the world's leading dealmakers.

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