IMAP closes 47 M&A transactions worth over $2 billion in Q1 2023
IMAP closed 47 M&A transactions valued at over $2 billion in the first quarter of 2023. While the figure was down from previous quarters it was not as low as initially expected. At the macro level, interest rate hikes, persistently high inflation, financial market instability, and fears of a recession put a damper on dealmaking activity. At the transaction level, IMAP dealmakers have reported that buyers are placing increasing scrutiny on target business models and projections. Furthermore, with bank financing more expensive and difficult to obtain compared to the exuberance seen in recent years, valuation levels for some targets at least, have dampened. Nevertheless, high quality businesses with strong margins and defensive growth profiles continue to attract interest from well positioned strategic buyers and financial buyers alike as equity funds remain keen to deploy their vast capital resources.
Business Services, Industrials, Consumer & Retail, and Building Products & Services were the most active sectors, accounting for 60% of total IMAP deal volume. Approximately 32% of the transactions were cross-border, which is consistent with previous quarters and reflects IMAP’s global nature. The bulk of IMAP’s Q1 deals involved a target company in either Europe or North America, with deal flow slightly more limited in Asia and Latin America.
IMAP Chairman, Jurgis V. Oniunas said: "Tight financial conditions and the specter of a recession are dominating headlines. However, IMAP partners continue to demonstrate resiliency and are actively working to meet client needs, just as they did during the pandemic and previous downturns. One of the key themes of our recent IMAP Spring 2023 Conference in Vail, Colorado was Generational Change. We are on the cusp of this generational change not only in our client base, as baby-boomers face retirement and tens of thousands of companies will need new owners, but also in our partnership, as dynamic emerging leaders take the baton. Serving these markets as we head into what may be one of most challenging economic environments in decades will require new approaches, employing new ideas and technologies and will be a major challenge for which we will be fully prepared.”
For half a century, IMAP has been successfully guiding and helping clients thrive in competitive, ever-changing economies. Specializing in M&A, debt, equity, and corporate advisory services, it is consistently ranked in the world’s Top 10 M&A advisors for mid-market transactions. Over the last 10 years, its team of over 450 M&A professionals worldwide in 40+ countries has closed over 2,200 transactions valued at $130 billion. IMAP’s clients are primarily mid-sized companies, as well as large domestic and international companies and corporations, family offices, and financial and institutional investors. For more information, visit www.imap.com.
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Contact:
Claire Smedley, Head of Communications & PR - cs@imap.com
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