Legal & Business Affairs
Rights, contracts, and business affairs across film and television library assets.
About the firm
Independent by design. Built for complexity.
TOA Advisors was founded on a simple conviction: the toughest transactions demand objective advice and the best possible team behind every deal.
Our approach
A specialist in complex and special-situation M&A.
Founded in 2024, TOA Advisors, LLC is an independent advisory firm focused on complex and special-situation M&A, with deep expertise in the Media & Entertainment sector. We advise on the sale, monetization, and restructuring of high-profile content assets — film and television libraries, streaming and digital platforms, and the intellectual property behind them.
We regularly represent senior lenders and stakeholders in creditor-driven asset sales, licensing monetization, and restructuring processes. We built TOA to remove the conflicts that shape advice at larger institutions: with no lending balance sheet, no research to sell, and no proprietary capital, our only incentive is our client's outcome.
Every engagement is led personally by a senior advisor with more than two decades of experience — the judgment and relationships of a global bank with the focus and discretion of a boutique.
- IndependentConflict-free advice with no products to sell.
- Senior-ledThe advisor who wins your trust executes your deal.
- SpecialistDeep expertise in Media & Entertainment and special situations.
- TenaciousWe unlock value under the most challenging circumstances.
How we deliver
The best team, assembled for every transaction.
For every engagement, TOA assembles the best possible team — pairing senior deal leadership with the specialists each situation demands — to deliver the strongest execution and the maximum result for the client.
Rather than carry a fixed staff, TOA draws on a curated bench of experienced operators and subject-matter experts, engaged on demand and matched to the specific needs of each mandate — from legal and business affairs across content libraries to media engineering, technology diligence, and asset recovery. It is the depth of a much larger firm delivered through an efficient, collaborative model: lean, aligned, and built around a single goal — the best outcome for the client.
Media & Broadcast Engineering
Technical diligence and hands-on support for streaming and content platforms.
Technology & Platform Diligence
Assessment of tech stacks, infrastructure, and digital-platform operations.
Asset Recovery & Transition
Recovery, migration, and transition of assets through complex processes.
How we work
A disciplined process, tailored to each mandate.
01
Understand
We start by understanding your goals, constraints, and definition of a good outcome — well before any process begins.
02
Prepare
Positioning, valuation, and materials that present the business at its best and anticipate every question.
03
Execute
We run a disciplined, competitive process and negotiate hard on the terms that matter most to you.
04
Close
Hands-on management of diligence, documentation, and stakeholders through to a certain, successful close.
Leadership
Founder & Managing Director
Asher Cohen
Founder & Managing Director
Los Angeles, California
With more than 20 years of investment banking advisory experience, Asher Cohen specializes in M&A with deep expertise in distressed and special situations.
In recent years, his work has focused heavily on the Media & Entertainment sector, advising on the sale, monetization, and restructuring of high-profile content assets. Notable transactions include the $60 million sale of Sonar Entertainment — including the Lonesome Dove library and other iconic television properties — and the $87.5 million sale of Open Road Films, home to Oscar-winning titles such as Spotlight, to Raven Capital. He continues to represent senior lenders and stakeholders in creditor-driven asset sales, licensing monetization, and restructuring processes across digital platforms and film and television libraries.
In 2024, Asher founded TOA Advisors, an independent advisory firm focused on complex and special-situation M&A. TOA has been engaged by HPS Investment Partners and MidCap Financial to manage the sale of all assets of Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment (CSSE) — including its film and television libraries, Crackle, Redbox, and other assets — through a series of lender-driven transactions.
Previously, Asher served as Managing Director at FTI Capital Advisors, Director and Head of the Telecom Practice at Houlihan Lokey, and Associate in the TMT Group at J.P. Morgan — roles that provided broad exposure to both healthy and distressed transactions across the TMT landscape. He holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Tel Aviv University and an M.B.A. from New York University's Stern School of Business.
Core expertise
Where we add the most value.
Media & Entertainment Transactions
Film and television libraries, streaming and digital platforms, and content IP — sales, monetization, and licensing.
M&A — Sell-Side & Buy-Side
Full-lifecycle advisory on company, division, and asset transactions in both healthy and distressed contexts.
Restructuring & Special Situations
Creditor-driven asset sales and restructuring processes, representing senior lenders and stakeholders.
Valuations & Fairness Opinions
Independent valuation analyses and fairness opinions for boards, fiduciaries, and lenders.
Experience built at
Two decades across leading institutions.
FTI Capital Advisors
Managing Director
Houlihan Lokey
Director, Head of Telecom
J.P. Morgan
Associate, TMT Group
Let's talk about what's next for your business.
Every engagement starts with a confidential conversation.
Contact TOA Advisors