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March 21, 2017

Written by Olga Tarabrina

Global M&A reaches $705.0bn

Global M&A volume has reached $705.0bn in 2017 YTD, surpassing $700bn in a YTD period for the first time since 2007 ($903.5bn). Of this, a total of 125 $1bn+ deals, worth $454.9bn, have been announced so far this year, compared to only 94 deals (totaling $260.3bn) 5 years ago. $10bn+ deals account for $167.2bn of the total this year.

Cross-border transactions drive volume

The increase in M&A volume has been driven by cross-border acquisitions, which have doubled in the last 5 years to $288.4bn in 2017 YTD ($144.9bn in 2012 YTD), and is the highest YTD level in a decade ($324.7bn in 2007 YTD). The US is the top acquiring nation for cross-border M&A with $95.8bn, the highest YTD level on record. Domestic M&A stands at $413.7bn, also up 4% year-on-year, with the US representing a 47% share ($192.9bn) of all domestic M&A this year.

Johnson & Johnson’s pending $31.4bn bid for Actelion is expecting to complete on April 26, and is the largest M&A deal announced in 2017 YTD. It is also the third largest Europe-targeted acquisition by a US-based company, and the second largest Swiss inbound M&A deal on record.

Oil & gas, healthcare, and technology

Oil & gas is the top targeted sector in 2017 YTD with volume totaling $96.7bn, the highest YTD level on record. Domestic activity in the US and Canada helped to boost volume, with deals worth $52.8bn (62% share) and $9.4bn (10% share), respectively. Both countries are also the top targeted nations for cross-border oil & gas M&A in 2017 YTD, with a combined share of 40% of volume.

The healthcare ($95.9bn) and technology ($87.1bn) sectors follow. Intel’s $15.4bn pending bid for Mobileye, announced on March 13, is the largest technology M&A transaction in 2017 YTD and the largest Israel-targeted M&A deal on record.

The top advisor for global M&A

Morgan Stanley leads the global M&A ranking in 2017 YTD with $142.7bn, followed by Bank of America Merrill Lynch with $130.3bn and Citi with $123.9bn.

 

Data source: Dealogic, as of March 21, 2017