Last week I shared that I’ve been riding shotgun with a VC-backed founder to help him sell his company. The deal was in the final stages of closing last week. It closed on time late last week, but there was a hiccup. The buyer attempted to send the funds to the seller, but he made an error. The seller had provided bank wire instructions, but the buyer sent an ACH transfer based on the bank wire details. Wire transfers and ACH transfers use different types of routing information, so the funds never reach the seller.

The deal technically closed, but this issue delayed the transfer of assets to the buyer. The seller wanted the funds before he transferred the assets—rightly so.

The ACH transfer was returned to the buyer by the bank when it realized that no recipient matched the information provided. The buyer re-sent the funds, and they arrived in the middle of this past week. The transfer of assets was also completed this past week.

I always tell founders that the deal isn’t done until the wire (or ACH) clears your bank. Until then, keep pushing, because things can and do go wrong.

Congrats to this founder for closing the deal and finally getting his funds . . . even if they were a little late.