Acquisitions of companies, including French players, had their worst start to the year in four years in 2023 as the market continued to slow after an initial slowdown in 2022, according to a report published on Wednesday.
The amounts of mergers and acquisitions transactions that include at least one French company fell 43% in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the same period of the previous year to settle at 30.7 billion dollars, according to the final report of the specialist in Refinitiv financial data. . This is the weakest first quarter since 2019, according to this study. Mergers and acquisitions of French players to foreign companies fell 58%, again to their lowest level since 2019.
Mergers and acquisitions approached $300 billion in 2021, the highest level since 2006 with the post-Covid-19 economic recovery and period of very low interest rates. But the rate hike orchestrated by central banks for more than a year to fight inflation has limited the room for maneuver for companies and the momentum had faded since mid-2022.
The value of transactions falls globally
The most important operation recorded is the merger of the French company Webhelp, controlled by Groupe Bruxelles Lambert (GBL) with its American competitor Concentrix to create “a world leader in customer experience”, capable of competing with the shopping center giant. . Exclusive negotiations are underway valuing Webhelp at €4.4bn, also subject to clearance from regulatory authorities.
The arrival of investors to the capital of the Rothschild investment bank or other players within the group of Orpea nursing homes also occupied the lives of the companies during the first quarter.
Globally, the quarter was the least active since the second quarter of 2020, amid lockdowns due to Covid-19, according to data from the Dealogic company. The value of transactions was cut in half in one year. “The noises of the recession have only gotten louder, the world’s major central banks have continued to raise policy rates to curb stubbornly high inflation, and some of the biggest bank failures since the Great Financial Crisis of 2008-2009 rocked global markets,” the analysts said. summarized.
Source: BFM TV
