July 2022
We highlight the key UK & European M&A trends in H2 2021 and H1 2022, and provide our insights into the outlook for M&A moving forward.
July 2022
We highlight the key UK & European M&A trends in H2 2021 and H1 2022, and provide our insights into the outlook for M&A moving forward.
Key highlights from H2 2021 include the following:
High levels of M&A across the UK and Europe, notwithstanding uncertainty ignited by the Russia/Ukraine conflict. Europe’s banks have emerged from COVID-19 turmoil resolute in their ambitions to shed non-core assets, consolidate regional strongholds and rigorously pursue digitalisation strategies
Europe has bucked the global trend of tightening private capital purse strings. While successful funding rounds rage on, fintechs with critical mass are deploying M&A strategies to consolidate horizontally and integrate vertically
With over 350 deals in the European AWM sector in 2021, M&A consolidation activity is hotter than it has ever been in the past 15 years. Conventional wisdom is now under the microscope—is bigger really better?
Investor appetite is at an all-time high—while VC investors back growing service providers, PE investors supercharge IPO glide paths and established banks refuse to abdicate market share
Europe’s FMI goes digital—data analytics, capital markets solutions, RegTech and DLT-based tech acquisitions feed the steady stream of M&A activity
Marginal improvement in investor sentiment for high-quality brokers, particularly across online brokerage, crypto trading and carbon credit trading
BNPL steals the show—20 successful European BNPL provider funding rounds in the past 12 months, covering the full spectrum from Seed through to late-stage
Marginal uptick in M&A levels in the past 12 months, with property, automotive and revenue-based finance attracting the most investor interest
UK & European Financial Services M&A: Sector trends H2 2021 | H1 2022 — Asset/Wealth Management
With over 350 deals in the European AWM sector in 2021, M&A consolidation activity is hotter than it has ever been in the past 15 years. Conventional wisdom is now under the microscope—is bigger really better?
Consolidation activity to continue, but early signs that scale and profitability do not necessarily go hand in hand.
White & Case advised BNP Paribas Asset Management, the largest shareholder of EAB, on EAB’s merger with Evli.
White & Case advised Catella Group, the Sweden-based fund management business, on the sale of its remaining 30% stake in Catella Fondförvaltning to Athanase.
The wave of fund manager M&A that drove global deal numbers to a record high last year has run into 2022, with the value of transactions in the first four months of 2022 its highest since 2018. (Financial News, May 2022)
Deal numbers reach record high. There have been 362 M&A deals in the European fund management sector in 2021—comfortably beating the 279 that were struck in 2020. (Financial News, December 2021)
Investment experts are beginning to question the wisdom of the recent flood of M&A among asset managers since they’re often followed by fleeing funds and falling share prices. (Financial News, October 2021)
Smaller deals between asset managers are running at the hottest pace in almost 15 years as businesses hunt for tactical acquisitions instead of bigger, riskier purchases. (Financial Times, September 2021)
White & Case advised Oaktree Capital Management on its acquisition of UK private wealth management and investment businesses, Sanlam Wealth.
PE firms have been buying up companies that advise individuals on their wealth, surging to a record 223 in 2021. (Financial Times, December 2021)
UK investors turned their backs on passive funds in July 2021, favouring actively managed sustainable investment products which chalked up one of their best months on record. (Financial News, August 2021)
White & Case advised JTC, the global professional services business, on its acquisition of Essential Fund Services, the private capital fund administration services specialist.
The corporate and fund services space has seen relatively consistent numbers of transactions involving Europe-based targets over the last few years, and data suggests that the trend will continue. (Mergermarket, July 2021)
Click here to download ‘Financial institutions M&A: Sector trends — Other FS’ PDF
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