Mergers, Acquisitions, and Divestitures: M&A Report (Boston Consulting Group)

Summary

• Divestitures represented almost half the total M&A market in 2013.§1
• BCG's database holds almost 40,000 transactions since 1990.§2
• In 2013 overall deal volume declined by 6% and total deal value fell by 10% from 2012.§2
• North America's share of the global M&A market reached 52% in the first half of 2014, up from 45% in 2010.§3
• In BCG's 2014 investor survey, the share of respondents favoring a more aggressive approach to M&A almost tripled from 23% to 60% between 2012 and 2014.§4
• Private-equity cash reserves total $431 billion, approaching their levels in 2008 and 2009.§4

Key insights

1. The megadeal, a transaction with a value of more than $10 billion, returned in 2014 after years in hibernation.§1
2. The 2014 report is the tenth in BCG's series on major M&A trends.§1
3. Total deal value in the US and Canada rose more than 5% per year over the period while activity stagnated in most other regions.§3
4. Priceline.com purchased OpenTable for $2.7 billion.§3
5. Verizon's acquisition of Vodafone's interest in Verizon Wireless was valued at $130 billion.§3
6. Corporate cash levels are at an all-time high, three times their level in 2000.§4
7. The number of private-equity transactions rose 22% between 2012 and 2013, but total value declined 3%.§4