Main M&A companions are predicting a rise in deal exercise in 2025 pushed by sectors together with tech, monetary providers and personal capital, as full 12 months M&A authorized adviser rankings from the London Inventory Alternate Group (LSEG) spotlight the growing affect of prime US corporations available on the market.
The LSEG report reveals world M&A exercise elevated by 10% throughout 2024, reaching a complete worth of $3.2trn. This was pushed by a 17% rise in mega-deals price greater than $5bn, with 96 of those blockbuster offers totalling $1.1trn throughout the 12 months.
The rise in worth got here in opposition to a 14% drop within the whole variety of offers worldwide, nonetheless, with 50,200 offers representing an eight-year low in world deal quantity. The variety of offers underneath $500m fell by 17% year-on-year, in opposition to a 4% decline in world mid-market deal worth.
Prime 20 world principal advisers introduced
Rank
Agency
Whole deal worth
Variety of offers
1
Kirkland & Ellis
$413.2bn
776
2
Latham & Watkins
$391.4bn
657
3
Skadden
$346.7bn
200
4
Paul Weiss
$305.5bn
208
5
Freshfields
$268.8bn
259
6
Wachtell
$240.1bn
73
7
Simpson Thacher
$226.2bn
221
8
Linklaters
$207.4bn
253
9
Cleary Gottlieb
$201.7bn
138
10
Davis Polk
$189.8bn
135
11
Gibson Dunn
$168.6bn
283
12
Sullivan & Cromwell
$151.7bn
110
13
Debevoise & Plimpton
$116.6bn
79
14
Goodwin Procter
$116bn
893
15
DLA Piper
$112.3bn
872
16
Cravath
$111.2bn
36
17
Ropes & Grey
$107.5bn
196
18
Sidley Austin
$99bn
242
19
Clifford Likelihood
$95bn
185
20
A&O Shearman
$94.4bn
319
Kirkland & Ellis took the highest spot in LSEG’s world principal adviser authorized desk as soon as once more, securing mandates on 776 offers price a complete of $413.2bn. Notable offers included advising sell-side on the $36bn acquisition of Pringles and Pop-Tarts maker Kellanova by Mars, in addition to buy-side on EP Group’s proposed takeover of the Royal Mail.
Kirkland personal fairness heavyweight David Higgins predicts a busy 2025 for personal capital, as funds look to deploy their capital throughout each private and non-private M&A. ‘We additionally count on the tempo of exits to extend as traders deal with returning worth to their LPs. Asset administration M&A amongst traders can also be more likely to stay energetic,’ he added.
Latham & Watkins got here in second place, securing mandates on 657 offers valued at $391.4bn, together with advising Skydance Media on its multibillion-dollar merger with Paramount World.
‘2024 was one other excellent 12 months of progress for our world M&A observe, and we’re excited by the outlook and pipeline for the months forward,’ mentioned Latham company companion Sam Newhouse.
‘Globally, we’ve constructed a unbelievable transactional platform at Latham with deep experience throughout each main monetary centre and sector driving the worldwide financial system, enabling us to work with our shoppers at each section of their enterprise life cycle.’
Skadden ranked third amongst principal advisers on globally introduced offers, valued at $346.7bn. This included advising Mars on its acquisition of Kellanova, reverse Kirkland.
Lorenzo Corte, world head of Skadden’s transactions practices, expressed enthusiasm for the M&A marketplace for 2025: ‘Trying forward, we’re extremely optimistic concerning the deal pipeline throughout the London workplace, in addition to broader exercise within the US and Europe.’
He added that regardless of some regulatory headwinds, strain might reduce over time. ‘If that coincides with rising market confidence, it might function a catalyst for a surge in exercise in 2025, making a dynamic atmosphere for transformative offers,’ he defined.
Whereas US corporations proceed to dominate the rankings, with Paul Weiss, Wachtell, Simpson Thacher, Cleary Gottlieb, and Davis Polk all within the prime ten, magic circle agency Freshfields claimed the fifth spot, and Linklaters secured eighth place within the world introduced offers desk, with every agency enhancing its rating on final 12 months.
Co-head of Freshfields’ world M&A observe Andrew Hutchings highlighted the agency’s robust efficiency in sectors similar to expertise, monetary providers and life sciences final 12 months. ‘We noticed a transparent shift towards fewer however bigger offers’, he mentioned. ‘This performed to our strengths, as we excel in advising on complicated, high-value transactions that require a nuanced understanding of world markets and regulatory frameworks.’
Seeking to the 12 months forward he mentioned that whereas geopolitical components will proceed to affect M&A technique, AI and expertise will proceed to drive exercise. He added: ‘We anticipate continued momentum throughout a spread of sectors together with expertise, life sciences, monetary providers and vitality transition. Public takeover exercise will proceed for strategic and personal capital shoppers.’
Simon Branigan, world head of company at Linklaters mentioned stronger investor confidence and higher financial circumstances will seemingly imply additional revival of the M&A market in 2025, with technological advances once more fuelling offers.
He mentioned: ‘2025 might be marked by strong M&A exercise characterised by strategic investments in expertise, sustainability, and world enlargement. Key influences will embrace technological developments as corporations search aggressive benefits by modern acquisitions, alongside a heightened deal with ESG components driving sustainability-focused transactions.’
Melissa Fogarty, co-head of Clifford Likelihood’s company observe in London, mentioned she expects ‘robust, sustained exercise’ in 2025, significantly in sectors like monetary providers, tech, vitality, and healthcare and life sciences.
‘This might be led by corporations with robust strategic visions leveraging the extra beneficial market circumstances, alongside personal capital which is predicted to play a big position as debt pricing improves and valuation gaps slender,’ she added. ‘Nevertheless, the market isn’t with out its headwinds; geopolitical uncertainties amongst them,’ she warned.
Prime 20 any US involvement introduced
Rank
Agency
Whole deal worth
Variety of offers
1
Kirkland & Ellis
$400.7bn
741
2
Skadden
$388.1bn
155
3
Paul Weiss
$343.4bn
193
4
Latham & Watkins
$340bn
515
5
Sullivan & Cromwell
$309bn
131
6
Gibson Dunn
$250.7bn
264
7
Wachtell
$240.8bn
68
8
Simpson Thacher
$211.4bn
194
9
Davis Polk
$209.4bn
129
10
Freshfields
$165.9bn
109
11
Cravath
$158.6bn
55
12
Cleary Gottlieb
$156.6bn
87
13
Goodwin Procter
$150.1bn
743
14
White & Case
$125.5bn
144
15
Ropes & Grey
$112.5bn
199
16
Fried Frank
$103bn
46
17
Debevoise & Plimpton
$102.9bn
72
18
Sidley Austin
$99bn
231
19
DLA Piper
$94.8bn
489
20
Linklaters
$93.6bn
82
Whereas LSEG’s knowledge highlights the rising affect of US corporations within the UK M&A markets, with US corporations holding six of the highest ten spots within the UK introduced offers desk, it additionally confirmed an enchancment within the positions of each Linklaters and Freshfields within the US deal tables. Freshfields got here tenth, up from thirteenth place, with Linklaters climbing from twenty fourth to twentieth. Taking a look at accomplished US offers in 2024, Freshfields, Linklaters and Clifford Likelihood all improved their positions markedly.
Freshfields’ Hutchings added: ‘The US market stays a crucial driver of world exercise, and our capability to mix deep native experience with cross-border capabilities has been a key differentiator for our shoppers. The success of the expansion of our US observe is absolutely thrilling for your entire agency and a differentiator.’
Extra reporting by Anna Huntley and Tom Cox.
elisha.juttla@legalease.co.uk
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