When Miami-based Burger King (BKC) announced its acquisition of Tim Hortons on August 26, the pundits went wild and consumers made mincemeat out of Burger King on social media. While the burger chain claimed they wanted to leverage their new Canadian partner’s breakfast expertise, financial analysts immediately started debating the financial benefits of Burger King relocating from the U.S. to a country with lower corporate taxes—a move known as “corporate inversion.” While it’s tempting to focus on this controversy, the back story of how BKC got to this point is far more interesting.