Strategic Alternatives

Going into the next election, US regulators are more likely to double down than back off their focus on big M&A deals and they’re looking most closely at consumer-facing businesses. Vito Sperduto, Head of Global M&A, sat down with Andrew Lipman, Partner at Morgan Lewis at RBC’s Global Technology, Internet, Media and Telecommunications (TIMT) Conference to discuss how antitrust will continue to affect US regulation in our current environment.

The equity capital market is technically open. Some big IPOs have been delivered. Yet many investors and issuers still prefer to wait rather than act. What’s holding them back, and what are the prospects for the market getting back into full swing in 2024?

From geopolitical volatility to a looming election year, there’s hardly been a more important time to examine strategic alternatives. With M&A levels below average, but IPO volumes high — what might the next stretch look like for transactional activity? And how quickly will markets recover from potential disruption? 

Corporate buyers currently have the edge when it comes to M&A opportunities in industrials. Yet customized deals may increasingly provide a way for private equity to bridge the bidding gap, suggests RBC Industrials specialist, Joshua Rosenbaum.

Recent deals in the industrial sector suggest an acclimatization to the new interest rate environment. What are the prospects for an unleashing of pent-up M&A demand, and how do labor and supply chain pressures skew that picture?

There’s a growing trend in joint ventures between sponsors and corporates as boardrooms seek out Private Equity expertise and funding to get complex deals done. In this episode, we examine how clients are finding innovative paths to dealmaking and bolstering their businesses through M&A. Listen now.

A rebound in bank lending for H2 2023, steady interest rates, recent valuation corrections and lots of dry powder offer hope for an uptick in private equity deals and exit activity in the year ahead. Listen to the latest episode of Strategic Alternatives to learn more.

With greater regulatory clarity, some transactions are becoming easier and less costly to execute, while challenging macro conditions call for sound strategy and niche structures to unlock deals.

M&A transactions have fallen 30-45% year-on-year. But while the era of “free capital” may be over, sophisticated structures and a return of CEO confidence should lead to more deals in H2 2023.

A tightened regulatory environment is shifting firms away from large cap mergers towards smaller deals. But with over a trillion dollars on balance sheets, activity is set to pick up pace in the second half of 2023 as firms aggressively chase M&A opportunities.