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ABU DHABI / Emirates Business
The value of Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A), transactions with any Middle Eastern & North African (Mena) involvement rea-ched $45.1 billion during the first nine months of 2018, according to Refinitiv, formally Financial & Risk business division of Thomson Reuters.
The amount is 65% more than the value recorded during same period in 2017 and an 8-year high. Deals with a Middle Eastern and North African target reached an all-time high rising to $27.1 billion, up 89% from the same period in 2017 while inter-Mena or domestic deals also up 106% from YTD last year, said Refinitiv, in its 2018 Q3 investment banking analysis for the Middle East.
Driven by Saudi British Bank acquisition of the entire share of capital of Alawwal Bank for $5 billion, Mena inbound M&A currently stands at an all-time high rising to $13.1billion while outbound M&A increased from $8.5 billion in the first nine months of 2017 to $12 billion so far this year.
Energy & Power deals accounted for 28.9% of Mena involvement M&A by value, followed by the financial sector with a 24.5% market share but counting with 91 transactions, 32 more than the 59 recorded in the Energy & Power industry. Goldman Sachs currently leads theQ3 2018 announced any Middle Eastern and North African involvement M&A league table. JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley follow in second and third place.
According to the report, Middle Eastern & North African investment banking fees totalled an estimated $684 million during the first nine months of 2018, 8% less than the value of fees recorded during the same period in 2017. Debt capital markets underwriting fees totalled $180.5 million, down 13% year-on-year but still the second highest fee volume for the region since our records began in 2000.