M&A deals come roaring back as executives plot post-COVID future
Myriam Balezou, Crystal Tse and Kiel Porter, Bloomberg News A bird flies between office towers in the financial district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on Friday, May 22, 2020. , Bloomberg
Global merger and acquisition activity clawed its way back from near-decade lows in 2020, facing down the COVID-19 pandemic with a string of large transactions in the second half of the year that dealmakers hope will continue.
Deal volumes are now down about six per cent for the year to US$3.5 trillion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Still, the fact that about two-thirds of those were inked since the start of July has advisers talking about a dramatic comeback, after the first half of 2020 froze M&A and sent North American deal activity down more than 50 per cent.