PREMIUM
David Leslie founded his own corporate finance business after leading accountancy giant PwC’s deal-making team in Scotland Picture: Colin Mearns MERGERS and acquisitions activity will slow in Scotland in 2021 as uncertainty about the outlook for the economy amid the coronavirus crisis and Brexit weighs on sentiment, one of the country’s best known corporate financiers has said. However, David Leslie said Scottish companies have shown their resilience in recent years and predicted that deals will still happen with potential buyers focused on sectors such as pharmaceuticals, technology and financial services. “Overall mergers and acquisitions activity will be down on recent years but there still will be a flow driven by potential upcoming tax changes, some key sectors still consolidating, and restructuring deals,” said Mr Leslie.