Sell-side due diligence has grown in popularity in recent years. Companies are increasingly seeing it as a way to improve their chances of impressing buyers while also boosting sales prices and reducing the potential for any slowdown in the transaction process.

 

Both buyers and sellers are beginning to recognize the value in sell-side diligence, which is why Donnelley Financial Solutions, in conjunction with Mergermarket, is pleased to present Due Diligence Roadmap: Optimizing the sell side, the third edition in a series. This report provides the key roles that sell-side diligence plays in preparing a company for a sale, finding a buyer, and lifting value.

 

 

Financial reporting has evolved in the 83 years since Congress passed the Securities Act of 1933, yet the SEC has been slow to adopt changes to corporate disclosure requirements. Progress is being made, however, through the “disclosure effectiveness” project started in 2013, which prompted a release regarding Regulation S-K in April 2016 and a proposal to eliminate overlapping provisions in July 2016. These efforts to revise disclosure requirements have led to debate among key stakeholders on the right way forward.

 

In order to understand how the reporting community is reacting to the SEC’s proposed changes, Vintage in collaboration with Mergermarket interviewed five industry professionals on their views.

 

 

Despite 2016 falling short of the M&A boom of last year, experts predict M&A activity to increase in 2017. Amid political uncertainty through the UK’s vote to break away from the European Union and the results of the US presidential election, 2016 produced a 20% year-over-year drop in global deal values. However, 2017 is expected to bring a bounce-back in activity, a competitive environment focused on technology, as well as challenges involving political upheaval and regulation.

 

In order to gain a further understanding of these trends and challenges that are expected to shape M&A dealmaking in 2017, Donnelley Financial Solutions commissioned Mergermarket to interview global dealmakers for their insights.

 

 

Uncertainty looms over North American mid-market M&A activity for the year ahead amid sliding deal activity and worldwide political volatility. 2016 saw North American mid-market dealmaking decrease through Q3, declining 25% in volume and 19% in value, year-over-year. Despite this drop, however, private equity activity remained strong with 781 PE deals valued at US$1bn. Also, inbound mid-market M&A increased throughout the year, up 21% in North America from Q1-Q3. With a new year ahead, how will these trends continue to shape the market?

 

Mergermarket, on behalf of Firmex, a virtual data room provider, interviewed five experienced dealmakers to find out what they expect from North American mid-market M&A in 2017.

 

 

Divestments can be an important tool to develop value and propel an overall growth strategy. Whether driven by a need to realign a company’s core focus, rising asset valuations, or the impact of the greater digital transition of industry, market observers noted an uptick in divestments over the course of 2016.

 

As we head into 2017, how will this trend evolve? Toppan Vite, a trusted financial printing and communications company, in partnership with Mergermarket, asked four M&A experts to find out.

 

 

Toppan Vite, a leader in financial printing, delivers a hassle-free experience for mission-critical content for capital markets transactions, financial reporting and regulatory compliance filings, investment companies and insurance providers. Part of the world’s largest printing company with over $13 billion in annual sales, we have the scale, financial strength and commitment to be the partner of choice for mission-critical transactions, any size, across the globe. Learn more at us.toppanvite.com

Mergermarket, in association with Willis Towers Watson, is pleased to present New horizons, the latest edition of our investigation of M&A trends in the insurance sector. The report canvassed the opinions of 200 senior-level executives within the insurance industry, split equally across the Americas, Asia and EMEA regions.

 

Highlights from the report include:

 

Foreign investors overwhelmingly agree: a new Myanmar is opening for business, and conditions in this emerging economy in Southeast Asia will become increasingly friendly to foreign capital in the year ahead. These favorable opinions are founded on the country’s transition from more than 50 years of military rule to a fledgling democracy. Recent elections have put a new government in power that recognizes the need and importance of foreign capital to develop the country and is rolling out measures to encourage further inflows. This, matched with sweeping political and economic reforms, impressive economic growth, and enticing demographics, are giving rise to international interest in Myanmar.

 

To analyse these trends and opportunities, MHM Yangon, in partnership with Mergermarket, canvassed the opinions of several foreign investor groups with experience of operating in the country. Published in this thought leadership piece “INVESTING IN MYANMAR”, their insights show opportunity areas for future investments as well as the challenges and risks foreign investors are likely to face. Among these, the key trends and anticipations for 2017 include:

 

2016 may not have surpassed the record highs of last year, with 670 fewer deals and an 18.1% decrease in overall value, but it did provide plenty of trends and milestones to examine for the year ahead.

 

North America ended its third-highest valued year on Mergermarket record (since 2001), with deals totaling US$1.5tn. Meanwhile, Europe claimed the highest volume with 6,756 deals. Energy Mining & Utilities emerged as the top sector thanks in large part to megadeals, 11 of which were worth more than US$10bn. A five-year high in private equity buyouts and US$1.3tn in announced cross-border deals were similarly noteworthy in a year marked by political uncertainty worldwide.

 

 

Despite political and economic turbulence around the world, 2016 proved to be among the strongest years on record for Canadian M&A. Heading into 2017, the country is expecting to have another robust year driven by a continual flow of outbound investment activity, according to Navigating change: Canadian M&A in a period of global upheaval, sponsored by Citi in association with Mergermarket. This report surveyed 50 senior Canadian M&A practitioners to gain insight on their predictions for Canadian dealmaking in 2017.