Our Team Bios

Ed Towers is President of Tiger Brokerage Group, a merger and acquisition (M&A) advisory firm.

As a middle market intermediary, Ed is involved in private investment banking, business brokering, valuations, and planning. Tiger is linked to M&A Source, the world’s largest network for intermediaries.

Ed has had a distinguished track record in mergers and acquisitions over 28 years. Before starting Tiger, Ed was Managing Director of a national M&A firm. Previously, Ed was COO and Board Member of Datawire, a startup software development firm with a wireless application for credit card transactions. Ed successfully raised second round of financing before the company was acquired by First Data Corp.

For 16 years as an officer, Ed headed up M&A with Telephone and Data Systems, Inc., a Fortune 500 telephone and wireless company. As Vice President of Corporate Development and Operations at TDS, Ed was responsible for strategy development, identification of potential targets and then negotiating and closing acquisitions and divestitures. He had an active role in taking their subsidiary (U.S. Cellular) public and wrote the business plan leading to the IPO. Ed spearheaded corporate growth by acquiring over 300 companies around the country. During his last year at TDS, Ed originated and negotiated 19 acquisitions worth over $600 million. For 5 years before joining TDS, Ed held various senior managerial roles in marketing and planning with GTE.

Prior to his career in mergers and acquisitions, Ed founded and ran a family owned office products retailer and educational materials distributor in the central Ohio area. Ed is a member of numerous professional organizations including Association for Corporate Growth, Financial Planning Association, International Business Brokers Association, M&A Source, and Mergers Club – an international network of M&A Advisers.

Ed is a Certified Business Intermediary (CBI), a Registered Financial Consultant (RFC), and a Certified Senior Advisor (CSA). He has a Certificate of Completion for the CFP Program and is a Qualified Financial Planner (QFP), which is the unifying credential that qualifies the various designations of personal financial planners, including CFP, ChFC, etc. In addition, Ed is a Registered Business Broker as well as a Franchise Broker in Illinois and a licensed Real Estate Broker in Wisconsin and Florida. Ed has been honored as a M&A Master Intermediary. His civic activities include the local Rotary Club, the Araba Shrine (32nd degree Mason), Naples Shrine Club, Cypress Lodge, and was Chairman of the Trustees with his church. Ed is past Chairman of the Rotary Economic Outlook, a charity event.

With Ed’s extensive experience and professional designations, he is a sought after speaker on M&A topics. He has given over 100 speeches and presentations to different organizations during his career and is on the Board of several companies.

Bill received a B.A. from Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, and he has also attended programs at Oxford University in England and Dartmouth College. He completed a Certificate in Financial Markets for the Center of Law and Financial Markets graduate school at the Illinois Institute of Technology. Bill also holds the CM&AA (Certified Merger & Acquisition Advisor) credential put forth by the AMAA (Alliance of Merger & Acquisition Advisors).

In 2004, Mr. Towers was granted the credential of Certified Business Intermediary (CBI). Associations to which Bill belongs are the Naples Sunset Rotary Club (Past President), Alliance of Merger & Acquisition Advisors, Kenyon College Alumni Association, Phi Kappa Sigma International Fraternity Alumni Association, and Lake Forest Academy Alumni Association.