Global mergers and acquisitions are a complex and nuanced procedures that involve a variety of stakeholders and are prone to risks. However, they also have the power to transform businesses and accelerate their growth.

The global M&A market hit an all-time low in 2023 as investors became more concerned about the effect of rising interest rates as well as geopolitical tensions among other factors (see Chart 1). Some experts believe that the market will rebound in 2024, once some of the headwinds diminish.

This optimism is due to the fact that there is a queue of assets that are available for sale in 2024. In recent years, a lot of private equity (PE) portfolio companies haven’t sold due to declining valuations. This will provide strategic buyers with the opportunity to purchase assets for lower value.

The ending of the current cycle of interest my latest blog post vdr-tips.blog/how-to-manage-granular-permissions-for-individual-users-in-vdr/ rate increases and a recovery in the stock market will increase the availability of debt finance for acquisitions. This will lower transaction costs and accelerate deal finalization. Additionally businesses will continue to make use of M&A as a method of mitigating increased geopolitical risk and expanding into new sectors, markets or revenue streams.

In the second half of 2023, a number deals that were structured were concluded. These included sales of minority stakes, as well as earnouts — arrangements that make it mandatory for the buyer to pay for the entire cost of the deal when certain operational or financial milestones are reached after the transaction has closed. This trend could continue as buyers seek to align their incentives in a more competitive environment and close the gap between their valuations.