Future North American dealmaking activity is ripe for expansion in the region’s mid-market M&A segment, providing new opportunities that were once wiped away during the financial crisis, according to the study Mid-market: The Crux of North American M&A.
Firmex data rooms, in partnership with Mergermarket, surveyed 50 senior M&A practitioners and industry experts based in the US and Canada to analyze the key trends in mid-market M&A dealmaking. A few key findings include:
- 88% of respondents expect mid-market M&A to rise in the next year in both Canada and the US
- Only 12% believe the level of dealmaking will remain stagnant
- 76% respondents believe business development companies are driving this increase
The future for North American mid-market firms is auspicious providing ample opportunity for growth
NEW YORK (February 4, 2015)- Future North American dealmaking activity is ripe for expansion in the region’s mid-market M&A segment, providing new opportunities that were once wiped away during the financial crisis, according to the study Mid-market: The Crux of North American M&A.
Firmex data rooms, in partnership with Mergermarket, surveyed 50 senior M&A practitioners and industry experts based in the US and Canada to analyze the key trends in mid-market M&A dealmaking. Private equity firms have proved more active in this segment as firms have set their sights on smaller firms demonstrating growth potential while cross-border deal flow continues to increase with firms actively seeking targets in overseas markets.
An overall increase in dealmaking activity does come with a few headwinds that are particularly unique to transacting in the mid-market range. Competition from larger firms continues to serve as a constant source of friction for mid-market firms as is their lack of experience to engage in acquisition-related activities.
“In 2014 the North American Middle Market attracted significant investor interest, and it looks to continue as a hotbed for deal activity in 2015”, said Joel Lessem, CEO of Firmex.
Respondents to this survey remain confident that the good outweigh the bad. Eighty-eight percent of respondents expect mid-market M&A to rise in the next 12 months in both the US and Canada, while a smaller percentage (12%) believe the level of dealmaking will remain stagnant for each country. Driving this increase in activity are business development companies (BDCs) who are expected to significantly impact the level of North American mid-market activity in 2015, as cited by 76% of respondents. BDCs are offering capital to mid-market firms that are finding it more difficult to obtain funding from bank sources and other lenders.
Click here to view the results and download the full PDF.
Mergermarket
Mergermarket, part of The Mergermarket Group, is an unparalleled, independent M&A intelligence tool used by the world’s foremost financial institutions to originate deals. It provides proprietary intelligence on potential deal flow, potential mandates and valuations via the world’s largest group of M&A journalists and analysts who have direct access to the most senior decision-makers and corporates. The Mergermarket Group has over 450 employees worldwide and regional head offices in New York, London and Hong Kong. Visit us at www.mergermarket.com
Firmex
Thousands of companies choose Firmex Virtual Data Room (VDR) solutions to securely share their highly confidential documents. Leaders in corporate and financial transactions, M&A, compliance, litigation, and procurement value Firmex’s ease of use and outstanding support to profitably accelerate their online document sharing and collaboration projects. More information about Firmex can be found at www.firmex.com
Contact:
Chrissy Carney
PR Manager—Americas
The Mergermarket Group
