FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Answers to common questions about buying and selling a business on Mantl.
About Mantl
What is Mantl?
Mantl is a marketplace for buying and selling established businesses in Jamaica. It is operated by Crest Labs Limited, Kingston.
What does Mantl not do?
Mantl does not hold transaction funds, does not provide escrow, and does not provide legal, tax, accounting or investment advice. It does not draft, supply or review sale agreements or other deal documents. Buyers and sellers use their own attorneys and advisors for those.
Are the businesses on the site real?
Not yet. The listings shown today are demonstration examples created to show how the marketplace works.
Selling a business
What kinds of sale can I list?
Two kinds only: a sale of 100% of the company's shares, or a sale of the business's assets. Mantl does not list the sale of part of a company.
Will people know my business is for sale?
Every listing is confidential. Buyers see only the industry, location, operating history and headline figures. Your business name and identity are released only to buyers you approve, after they sign a non-disclosure agreement.
What do I need to list?
Your certificate of incorporation or business registration, proof of ownership or authority to sell, photo identification, and a board resolution authorising the listing where the business is owned by a company. You also answer questions about any legal proceedings, charges, disputes or restrictions on sale. A Tax Compliance Certificate is optional; if you do not provide one, buyers see that it was not provided.
What is the attorney certification?
Before your listing goes live, an attorney certifies that you are entitled to sell. This covers the company's standing at the Companies Office of Jamaica, your identity and relationship to the business, the directors and shareholders, your authority to list and disclose, the board resolution, any restriction on transfer in the articles, registered charges, insolvency status, and the scope of any power of attorney relied on.
Does the certification check my financial figures?
No. It is not an audit, a valuation or a review of the business. Buyers can see what was certified and what was not.
How long does certification last?
Twelve months from the certification date. After that the listing shows the certification as expired.
What is the Mantl valuation?
Mantl's valuation engine calculates a valuation from the figures you supply. It is shown only to buyers you approve, alongside your asking price. It is not a formal valuation opinion, it is not a guarantee of value, and Mantl does not verify the figures it is based on.
Do I choose who sees my business?
Yes. You approve or decline each buyer, one at a time, for each listing. You can withdraw a buyer's access at any time.
What do I sign when I approve a buyer?
Three documents: a confirmation that nothing material has changed since your listing was last confirmed, a non-circumvention undertaking, and a consent to Companies Office monitoring.
What happens once I agree a sale?
You complete the sale with your own attorney. For any sale to a buyer introduced through Mantl, you keep Mantl's attorney in copy on the messages between the parties as the sale is carried out, and give Mantl a copy of the signed sale agreement and the closing confirmation. Mantl's attorney does not act for either party and does not advise on the sale.
What happens if the seller dies or loses capacity?
The listing is paused. An executor or administrator may act for the estate, authority to sell must be certified again at the estate's cost, and the Seller Agreement binds the estate.
Buying a business
Who can buy on Mantl?
Individuals, companies, and investment groups or family offices, including Jamaicans living overseas. Brokers and intermediaries cannot hold buyer accounts.
What can I see before I contact a seller?
Industry, location, operating region, annual revenue, profit, gross margin, profit margin, return on assets and return on equity (all before tax), number of employees, years of operation, reason for sale, where the figures came from, and the attorney certification.
How do I find out more about a business?
Request disclosure. You sign a bundle of four documents: a non-disclosure agreement, a non-circumvention undertaking, a consent to Companies Office monitoring, and a declaration of the entity through which you would buy. The seller then decides whether to approve you.
What do I see if the seller approves me?
The seller's identity and the business name, the full listing detail, the asking price and its basis, the Mantl valuation, the quality band and summary financials. No documents are released at this stage.
How do I get the financial statements and documents?
Through the data room. Ask for access, and the seller gives a second, separate approval. You then accept the diligence access fee and pay the invoice. The data room opens when Mantl records your payment.
Can I download documents from the data room?
No. Material is view-only. It cannot be downloaded, printed, copied, photographed or forwarded. Every page is watermarked with your name and the time of viewing, and viewing is logged.
Are the financial figures verified?
No. Mantl states where each figure came from — audited, accountant-prepared unaudited, management accounts, or seller declared — but does not verify or audit it. Checking the figures is part of your own diligence.
What do Strong, Sound and Watch mean?
They describe how complete a listing is and some characteristics of the business. They are not investment recommendations.
Fees
What does it cost to list a business?
A listing fee, paid when you submit, set by your declared annual revenue: up to J$10M, US$250; over J$10M to J$50M, US$500; over J$50M to J$150M, US$750; over J$150M, US$1,000. Fees are in US dollars plus GCT.
Is the listing fee refundable?
Only where Mantl cannot complete the listing process — for example, if a valuation cannot be produced or the uploaded documents cannot be processed. It is not returned if your authority to sell cannot be certified, if your corporate records are incomplete, or if you withdraw.
What is the placement fee?
When a sale completes, the seller pays 8% of the lower of two figures: the Mantl valuation fixed when the listing was first disclosed to the buyer who completes, and the sale price. The sale price is used only where it is shown by the signed sale agreement and the closing confirmation. Nothing is payable unless a sale completes.
Do buyers pay the placement fee?
No. Only the seller pays it.
What does it cost to buy?
A monthly subscription — SME US$125, Medium US$175, Large US$225, plus GCT. Your subscription tier sets which listings you can browse. You also pay a diligence access fee for each data room you open: SME US$1,500, Medium US$2,500, Large US$4,000, plus GCT.
How do I pay?
By bank transfer, against an invoice. Access starts when Mantl records your payment, not when you send it. Nothing is charged automatically.
Can I cancel my subscription?
Yes, at any time. Access continues to the end of the month already paid. There is no refund for the unused part of the month.
Is the diligence access fee refundable?
It is non-refundable once paid. The only exception is where the listing is withdrawn or set inactive after you have paid but before the data room opens; the fee is then returned in full.
Who pays for my credit check?
You pay the credit bureau directly for your own credit report. Mantl gives you that cost back as a discount on your subscription.
Checks, commitments and privacy
What checks does Mantl run?
Identity verification, sanctions and politically exposed person screening, and adverse media screening on buyers and sellers. Buyers also provide a credit report from a Jamaican credit bureau. Mantl validates taxpayer registration numbers with Tax Administration Jamaica.
Why does Mantl monitor the Companies Office records?
To confirm whether a sale took place. For 12 months after disclosure is approved, Mantl checks the Companies Office records of the listed business and the buyer's named acquiring entity once each quarter.
What is the non-circumvention undertaking?
Both buyer and seller agree not to deal with each other outside Mantl, or arrange the sale to avoid Mantl's fees, for 12 months from approval. Each must tell Mantl within 30 days of any offer made or received. If an offer is not notified, the sale is presumed to have completed and the placement fee becomes payable.
How are my documents read?
An AI model run by Mantl reads uploaded financial documents to extract figures. For some documents, identifying details are removed and the content is passed to an outside AI provider, which is not allowed to keep it or train on it.
How long is my information kept?
Documents, identity checks, messages, signed documents and records are kept for seven years. Valuations and sale outcomes, with identifying details removed, are used to improve Mantl's valuation engine.
How do I ask for a copy of my data, or ask for it to be corrected or deleted?
Use “Your privacy rights” on your account page, or use the contact page. Mantl replies within 30 days.
How do I contact Mantl?
Use the contact page.