11th IBA European Corporate and Private M&A Conference

She also took away some thoughts from the conference speakers and shares them with us:

– The global market saw fewer M&A deals in 2022 than in 2021. On a positive note, inflation and bond yields are starting to ease, and money is expected to flow into equities. However, Europe remains a challenging market due to the war and all the turmoil resulting from Russian aggression.

– FDI controls are very relevant to deals. With the deglobalization context in mind, countries want greater scrutiny over the type of investments coming into the economy. Governments have the power to block deals – and the decision to do so is primarily political.

– There is a sense that valuations may now be coming into line. However, earnouts, deferred payments, and vendor financing are often needed to boost buyers’ willingness to close.

– Tech remains one of the hottest sectors. But companies that can withstand a global slowdown or those with a genuine and positive ESG growth story are also in demand.

– Despite investors’ lack of confidence to do deals, antitrust authorities remain as agile as ever to enforce remedies and block deals, causing lawyers the pain of balancing the break fees and closing schedule negotiations.

We were thrilled to have such great group of global partners with whom we co-hosted Women in International M&A networking event together – Gide Loyrette Nouel, Mannheimer Swartling, Gianni & Origoni, Strelia, and Duane Morris LLP. We will meet at the next IBA conference!

#mergersandacquisitions #IBA #IBAConference #womeninlaw