# Build like a buyer: $175M ARR in 24 months · Worth Owning · Horizon

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![](/images/guests/andrea-matheson.jpg)Worth OwningEp. 01Andrea Matheson

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Worth Owning · Episode 01

# Build like a buyer: $175M ARR in 24 months

Hosted by **Krystyn Harrison** · With **Andrea Matheson**, Chief Business Officer, HorizonSep 2025 · 37 min

0:0037:00

Watch or listen on[Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/andrea-matheson-%24175m-arr-in-24-months-%241b-in-value/id1830558138)[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/5hOpLGuAecUP1KyJerEMwC)[YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJ_89vYsrOA)

## She ran 30+ acquisitions at CGI, then built one 3 banks bought

Overview

Andrea Matheson spent years on the buy side at CGI, handling more than $850 million in acquisitions and the diligence and integration of over 30 deals. Then she crossed the table. She co-founded Proponix, a paperless trade finance platform, took it from zero to $175 million in ARR in 24 months, and sold it about four and a half years in. Across three exits, she has helped create more than $1 billion in shareholder value.

Andrea explains how the build was shaped by an exit from day one. When 9/11 stalled the launch for 10 months, she used the time to talk to every potential customer she could find, and landed three bank partners: ANZ, Barclays and BMO. Proving the commercial case for those partners is what turned them into buyers. Along the way she kept the business documented, with a playbook a buyer could point to.

The turn came early. The three banks wanted the platform to themselves, which pulled the exit forward into six months of diligence, with board approvals at every bank. Andrea split the team so the going concern kept growing while a small group ran the deal. Her advice to owners: plan twice before you build, think like the buyer who will poke holes in your numbers, and decide what your time freedom looks like before the sale.

Chapters

What you’ll learn

01How to make decisions the way a buyer will judge them

02Why strategic partners can become your most likely acquirers

03How to keep growing the business while a team runs the deal

04Why planning twice before you build saves years later

Where does your business stand today?

[Get your Optionality Score →](/optionality-score)

## More on the episode

Episode 01Sep 2025 · 37 min

Note: Krystyn, Matt and their guests may hold interests in companies discussed in this episode. Worth Owning is not financial, legal, tax or investment advice, and is for informational purposes only. Do your own research and speak with your own professionals before making any financial decision.

[Where this shows up in your businessWant to build like a buyer is watching?The Exit Partnership helps you build the business a buyer will pay for, with a Partner who has sat on both sides of the table.See the Exit Partnership →](/exit-partnership)

![Andrea Matheson](/images/guests/andrea-matheson.jpg)

Guest

Andrea Matheson

Chief Business Officer, Horizon

Andrea Matheson led M&A at CGI, where she handled more than $850 million in acquisitions and served as co-CIO. She co-founded Proponix, scaled it to $175 million in ARR in 24 months before its sale to its bank partners, and has helped create more than $1 billion in shareholder value across three exits. She is now Chief Business Officer at Horizon.

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