M&A Deal Activity In 2020 Jumps 33% To $36.9 Billion, Says Report

Deals cut by Reliance Indus­tries helped overall mergers and acquisitions (M&As) activity grow 33 per cent in 2020 to $36.9 billion, a report has said. The number of deals came down to 357 from the 443 in 2019, indicating a surge in ave­rage ticket sizes, the report by advisory firm Grant Thornton said. It pointed to the combined $10.1-billion stakebuy in Reliance Jio by Facebook and Google as an illustrative case.

The year also saw nine oth­er deals value over $1 billion ea­ch, it said, adding that the top deals accounted for nearly two-thirds of the overall activity. There were 35 deals of over $100 million but under $1 billion, down from 47 in the year-ago period, it said.

Cross-border deal volumes fell 19 per cent compared with the previous year but the deal values jumped two times over 2019 to $21 billion, it said.

Indian firms with strong balance sheets have shaken off the shock from the pandemic to chase overseas acquisitions, coming back strong after rec­o­rding the lowest quarterly deal volumes in the second quarter of 2020 since 2011, it said. Cross-border transactions between India and the US dominated in both the in­bou­nd and outbound segm­ents.

Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.

We, however, have a request.

As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.

Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.

Digital Editor