M&A Deal Timeline in India: From LOI to Closing
A straightforward mid-market acquisition in India typically runs 4 to 7 months from signed LOI to closing, regulatory approvals are usually the long pole, not negotiation.
For a mid-market acquisition without CCI (competition) approval requirements or sector-specific FDI government-route conditions, the realistic timeline from a signed Letter of Intent to closing runs 4 to 7 months: due diligence (4 to 8 weeks), definitive agreement negotiation (3 to 6 weeks, often in parallel with diligence), and then a closing period that depends heavily on whether conditions precedent (regulatory consents, third-party approvals, key employee agreements) can close cleanly.
Where the deal does trigger CCI approval or falls under the government route for FDI, add another 8 to 16 weeks, these are the timeline items companies most often underestimate because they're not visible in the commercial negotiation.
The single biggest accelerant is starting regulatory and structuring analysis in parallel with, not after, commercial due diligence. Deals that sequence commercial talks first and structuring later routinely lose a month or more to rework once tax and regulatory findings surface late.