The McLean Group Served as the Exclusive M&A Advisor to an Undisclosed Intelligence Community Provider in its Sale to Bogart Associates, a Portfolio Company of CM Equity Partners.
McLean, Va. – February 16, 2021 – The McLean Group is pleased to announce that it advised an undisclosed Intelligence Community contractor in its sale to Black ICE (dba Bogart Associates), a member of the CM Equity Partners family of Companies. The transaction was led by The McLean Group’s Defense, Government & Intelligence (DGI) practice. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
This add-on provides increased capabilities in analytics, linguistics and IT services to Black Ice/Bogart Associates already robust platform. The acquired company applies counterinsurgency, counterintelligence, counterterrorism and operations research analysis, as well as cloud architecture and development and data science in support of mission-critical decision making to U.S Federal government intelligence agencies.
Mitch Martin of The McLean Group commented “It was a pleasure working with the team from Bogart Associates and CM Equity. Their vision for growth and acquisition strategy made it apparent from the start that this would be a fantastic partnership that significantly enhanced both organizations and brought additional capabilities to the government customer.”
Bogart Associates, headquartered in Reston, Virginia, is a national security services company providing high-end, innovative technology solutions to the U.S. intelligence community in support of their core mission. The Company’s services include high-level software development, systems engineering, big data architecture services, cloud computing, and large-scale enterprise services which allow intelligence agencies to transform multiple sources of data into actionable intelligence.
ABOUT CM-EQUITY
CM Equity Partners (CMEP), based in New York, NY, provides capital to companies in the Federal services and aerospace and defense industries. For nearly thirty years, CMEP has partnered with management teams to build value in its investment companies by leveraging its long-standing industry knowledge, relationships, operating experience, and its corporate finance, M&A, and private equity expertise.
About The McLean Group
For over 30 years, The McLean Group has been providing investment banking and financial services offerings focused on the Defense, Government & Intelligence (DGI), Security, Critical Infrastructure, Maritime, Facility Services, Unmanned Systems, and Public Safety markets. Our 60+ professionals bring deep industry experience and relentless execution to every client engagement. We provide solutions that blend financial creativity with operational expertise. Whether we are providing transaction advisory, valuation opinions, or growth capital, our services are unmatched in these core markets. Learn more at www.McLeanLLC.com.
RECENT NEWS
Q1 2026 Mergers & Acquisitions Market Update
The McLean Group’s Q1 2026 M&A Insider Report tracks deal activity across Defense & Government, Physical & Cyber Security, Critical Infrastructure, and Maritime. Q1 was the strongest quarter on record for Defense M&A with 104 closed transactions, headlined by Arcline’s $2.2B acquisition of Novaria Holdings and VSE Corporation’s $2.15B acquisition of Precision Aviation Group. Cyber Security saw $57B+ in transaction value led by Google’s $32B acquisition of Wiz and Palo Alto Networks’ $24.6B acquisition of CyberArk Software, with Cyber/Technology EBITDA multiples reaching 41.3x LTM. Critical Infrastructure closed 48 transactions including Constellation Energy’s $28.9B acquisition of Calpine, while Maritime rebounded to 24 transactions in Q1. The full report includes sector commentary, EBITDA valuation multiples, public company benchmarks, and representative transaction data for each sector.[…]
What Is a 409A Valuation and When Does Your Company Need One?
A 409A valuation is an independent appraisal of your private company’s common stock, and if you’re issuing equity incentive awards to employees, it’s a legal requirement, not a formality. Get it wrong, and employees face immediate income recognition, a 20% federal penalty tax, and potential state penalties that can push effective tax rates well above 50%. In this article, The McLean Group’s Valuation Advisory team breaks down exactly how 409A valuations work, when your company needs one, which IRS safe harbor methods apply at each stage, and the common mistakes that create tax exposure at exactly the wrong time: during fundraising, M&A due diligence, or an IRS audit.
EBITDA Only Tells Part of the Story. Does Your QofE Provider Reveal the Rest?
Normalized EBITDA shows clean profitability, but it doesn’t tell you whether that profitability is built to last. For PE sponsors, the difference between a well-priced deal and a costly mistake often comes down to whether your Quality of Earnings provider goes beyond standard adjustments and into the operational KPIs that reveal true margin durability. The McLean Group’s Transaction Advisory team explores how the right diligence partner layers in gross margin by service type, resource utilization rates, and backlog conversion patterns to give buyers a sharper view of risk, a stronger basis for negotiation, and a head start on post-close execution. […]









