Deal-making activity is expected to rise in 2015, according to research conducted by Mergermarket.

In this month’s Venue® Market Spotlight, brought to you by RR Donnelley in association with Mergermarket, research shows different types of deal-making, ranging from global M&A to IPOs, will experience an increase in the upcoming year.

As the M&A market comes very close to year-end, there are some regional trends that are noteworthy in terms of global dealmaking activity. One such highlight is North America’s dominance in terms of deal value in 2014 – YTD North American M&A deals have reached US$1.4tn, comprising 48% of the total value of global M&A deals. Europe however, saw the highest share of deals among all regions raking in 5,266 transactions worth US$792bn.

Highlights include:

• Latin American YTD deal value for 2014 totaled US$123.7bn compared to US$88.3bn during the same time last year
• The top North American deal involved Actavis’ acquisition of Allergan, owner of Botox, for US$63.1bn
• In Europe, a total of US$800.5bn worth of deals were signed YTD, a 37.7% increase on the same period last year and above any year since 2008

M&A activity for 2014 surpassed previous years’ figures in terms of total number of global transactions. Last year there were 16,588 deals compared to the next highest year, 2007, that saw 16,060 deals. Many factors contributed to these hyper elevated levels of dealmaking to include the overall improvement of the economy that gave CEOs the confidence needed to execute deals and significant cash piles companies accumulated throughout the crisis.

 

In looking at the year ahead, the big question for dealmakers becomes whether the positive momentum of deal flow last year will continue throughout 2015.

 

 

Mergermarket is pleased to present the third edition of INSIDE CORPORATE, a study of M&A activity in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), alongside macroeconomic and legal developments, published in association with WOLF THEISS. Drawing from extensive data on CEE M&A trends, the report offers insight into the challenges and opportunities facing the region, as well as the outlook for 2015.

 

 

Deal value in IT was up 25% in the first three quarters of 2015, as the industry continued its evolution. But what constitutes a sound strategy in this fast-moving sector? What role do link-ups play, and how can established players compete with rising start-ups? Toppan Vite, in partnership with Mergermarket, asked three IT M&A experts for their thoughts on the year ahead.

 

 

 

 

See more and subscribe to Toppan Vite’s Blog here.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index dropped 7% on the first day of trading in 2016, sparking a global selloff and renewing fears over the health of China’s economy, which slipped below 7% GDP growth in Q3 2015 for the first time since 2009. In spite of its slowing growth profile, China’s debt-fuelled economy has yet to embark on a process of deleveraging, compounding concerns over a credit bubble. This may generate an increase in corporate defaults as companies struggle to repay debt, especially in sectors hardest hit amid the slowdown, as indicated by escalating stress in the commodities, real estate and gaming industries.

 

Houlihan Lokey, in conjunction with M&A intelligence provider Mergermarket, takes a close look at corporate distress and debt restructuring trends in this exclusive thought leadership newsletter, “Distress and deceleration in China”.

 

 

Last year was an extraordinary year for M&A. With 16,837 transactions worth US$4.3tn announced globally, total value rose 30.5% from last year, breaking 2014’s previous record of US$3.3tn, despite a drop in volume by 560 transactions from 17,397.

 

 

Cross-border deal values in the fourth quarter of 2015 rose to the highest level ever recorded in a single quarter, fuelled by megadeals such as Pfizer’s purchase of Botox maker Allergan for US$183.7bn and Anheuser-Busch InBev’s US$120.3bn merger with SABMiller. These deals pushed Baker & McKenzie’s Cross-Border M&A Index, produced in association with Mergermarket, to a record high of 331.

Mergermarket, in association with Willis Towers Watson, is pleased to present Defying gravity, the latest edition of our investigation of M&A trends in the insurance sector. This year’s report canvassed the opinions of 750 senior-level executives within the insurance industry, split equally across the Americas, Asia and EMEA regions.

 

 

In 2015, divestitures accounted for US$4.7bn worth of ASEAN energy and mining deals. 14% of these divestitures were motivated by varying degrees of distress or a general need to refinance and restructure.

 

FTI Consulting and Clifford Chance, in collaboration with Debtwire, are proud to present their latest newsletter focusing on the rising distress and changing M&A landscape of the ASEAN energy and resources industry.

 

The newsletter looks in detail at the changing complexion of ASEAN’s energy market – including the increasing focus on renewables in the region, and at the regulatory challenges facing distressed investors. It also contains an outlook for the ASEAN distressed debt and insolvency market in 2016 and beyond.