Insurance sector deal-making hits decade high but 2023 outlook remains shaky February 26, 2023 Insurance sector M&A deals surged to a 10-year high in 2022, as the end of Covid-19 drove an uptick in deal-making activity. Insurance companies completed 449 M&A deals last year, marking the highest number of deals for a decade, new data from Clyde & Co shows. The surge in deals, from 418 in 2021 to [...]
Big Four look to hire London’s laid-off bankers to bolster their M&A teams February 6, 2023 The Big Four accounting firms – Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC – are seeking to hire laid-off bankers to bolster the ranks of their M&A advisory arms in the City. Top execs told City A.M. the world’s biggest professional services firms are seeking to capitalise on the downturn in big M&A deals by poaching talent [...]
Size matters: Womble Bond Dickinson merger with BDB Pitmans canned as it ‘would be more like a takeover acquisition’ February 1, 2023 Womble Bond Dickinson and BDB Pitmans have scrapped plans for a merger, the firms confirmed today, as analysts suggested the relative size of the former would mean a merger would, in reality, be more like a takeover. The law firms, who first entered talks in Autumn 2022, said in a joint statement they had “decided [...]
How global dealmaking fell to a 10-year low in 2022 – and why executives aren’t worried January 31, 2023 The value of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) globally dropped 36 per cent last year to a 10-year low but executives remain confident for dealmaking in 2023, a new report from Bain shows. The report, which was released today, shows that M&A, particularly mega-deals worth more than $10bn, slumped from June 2022 after five months of [...]
Howden’s revenues jump 60 per cent as insurance broker looks to capitalise on ‘very turbulent’ market January 30, 2023 Insurance broker Howden today posted “record” results for 2022, reporting a 60 per cent increase in revenue, with its chief executive adding that the firm was primed to further profit from the economic uncertainty heading into 2023. The insurance broker’s chief executive David Howden told City A.M. has said the London firm is primed to [...]
Is this the end of law firm IPOs? January 30, 2023 British law firms have traditionally stayed away from public markets. Yet following a series of IPOs over the past eight years, there are now six UK law firms listed on the stock exchange. Gateley became the first UK law firm to launch an IPO in 2015 after floating on London’s alternative investment market (AIM). In [...]
Murdoch cancels proposal to reunite Fox and News Corp as shareholders lack confidence January 25, 2023 Rupert Murdoch has abandoned an attempt to reunite Fox and News Corp after shareholders expressed their lack of confidence in the merger. An announcement by News Corp yesterday said Murdoch had retracted his proposal to “explore a potential combination of News Corp and Fox Corporation” in a letter to Fox and News Corp. The billionaire [...]
Standard Chartered mulls sale of £3bn aviation arm days after First Abu Dhabi Bank drops takeover bid January 11, 2023 Standard Chartered is considering selling its £3bn aviation finance business, the bank said today. Standard Chartered’s aviation business, which is based in Ireland, accounts for around two per cent of its total income. The business owns and manages over 120 aircraft, leasing them to over 30 of airlines around the world, according to Airfinance Journal’s [...]
What lies ahead for M&A in 2023 in EMEA? January 4, 2023 | City Talk This past year has been a bit different from the prior year for M&A. After a record year in 2021, EMEA M&A saw a downshift in momentum in 2022. Both deal volumes and values in EMEA fell in the first three quarters of 2022 compared to the same time last year: there were 8,279 deals [...]
Serica to acquire Tailwind in £367m deal December 20, 2022 Serica Energy has announced it will buy the entire share capital of fellow North Sea oil firm Tailwind Energy Investment for a combined £367m. Natural gas producer Serica Energy will provide a £58.7 million cash payment and will issue over 111m ordinary shares representing as much as 28.9 per cent of its share capital. The [...]