Deal Playbooks 7 min readUpdated Jun 6, 2026
How to Verify MRR on an Acquisition
The buyer-side checklist for verifying a seller's MRR claim — Stripe reconciliation, bank matching, refund analysis and cohort verification.
TL;DR
Never trust a seller's dashboard screenshot. Get read-only Stripe access, reconcile against bank deposits, and pull cohorts yourself. 20% of screenshots don't match reality.
The 3 mismatches to look for
Stripe MRR that doesn't tie to bank deposits, dashboard MRR that includes annual pre-payments as recurring, and cohort tables that quietly exclude churned customers.
Frequently asked questions
What if the seller refuses read-only access?
Walk away. It's 2026 — this is table stakes.
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