24^th October 2018, Milan, Italy: Mergermarket, the leading provider of M&A data and intelligence, has announced that Italian domestic and inbound M&A remain stable, despite uncertainty in the region. Foreign investment has yet to take a hit, with inbound M&A in Italy only dropping slightly in the first three quarters of 2018, with €32.2bn in deal value in the year to date compared to €38.2bn in 2017, which was driven by the €24bn Luxottica-Essilor tie up accounting for over a half of the deal value for that year.  In terms of domestic deals, there was a substantial drop in deal value in 1Q-3Q 2018 (€11.2bn) compared to 2017 (€21.8bn). This indicates that Italy had bigger domestic deals in 2017 compared to the smaller deals seen in 2018. This year, the country has dealt with difficult political conditions, with firms faced with a government prone to adversarial rhetoric towards the EU and markets in general since it has come into office, but in the year to date inbound and domestic M&A deal value remains robust. The data was announced at Mergermarket’s 11^th Annual Italian M&A and Private Equity Forum held in Milan on 24^th October.

Massimo Benedetti, PwC Deals Leader stated: “The strategic appetite to access the strong design and manufacturing capabilities of Italian firms coupled with higher barriers to international investors in other countries are, for now, offsetting uncertainties that are shooting up Italian spread. Those are to be urgently addressed, however, to avoid alarming investors and re-entering the investor black lists that will discourage strategic backers in the short term.”

Italian private equity buyouts have seen record activity this year, with buyout deal values hitting €15.8bn compared to just €8.2bn in 2017. The Italian private equity market is following a trend seen elsewhere where similar assets are performing well off the back of readily available financing options as well as heightened interest from investors, who are looking for better returns than the ones offered by more traditional investment options. And with large amounts of dry-powder ready to deploy the buoyant private equity dealmaking is likely continue into 2019.

One of the most high-profile deals seen this year was Michael Kors’ acquisition of Versace, demonstrating the international interest in one of Italy’s largest exports. The consumer sector has long been one of the most important sectors to the country, with the €24bn Luxottica-Essilor tie-up announced last year. Another noteworthy 2018 PE deal was the one between Compagnie Financiere Richemont SA and YOOX Net-A-Porter Group, the Italian fashion ecommerce leader, worth €2.6bn.

The biggest deal in Italy in the year so far has been the CK Hutchinson Holdings Limited and Wind Tre SpA deal, valued at €8.1bn, reflecting the global trend of interest in the ever-changing media and telecoms space.

Filippo Modulo, Managing Partner at CHIOMENTI commented: “Italy is a very active market at the moment, with high quality assets and strategic transactions at the gate. We see infrastructure, financial institutions and telecommunications as the most promising sectors for a very interesting 2019.”

Alessandra Castelli, EMEA Public Markets Editor at Acuris commented: “Italy continues to be an attractive market to foreign buyers. The Made in Italy and excellence of Italian products are expected to continue to attract the attention of international investors in the months to come”.

Media Enquiries

Ioiana Luncheon

PR Manager, EMEA

Acuris

E: ioiana.luncheon@acuris.com

T: +44 (0)20 3741 1391

About the Mergermarket 11^th Annual Italian M&A and Private Equity Forum:

This annual forum is designed to examine growth and financing trends in 2018 and will provide attendees with a platform to forge relationships with leading business figures and investors that will help delegates win more deals in Italy. The programme aims to address the concerns of the market through interactive debates and practical, no-nonsense viewpoints.  Held on 24^th October 2018 at the Principe di Savoia, Milan in strategic partnership with Chiomenti and PwC. Visit https://events.mergermarket.com/italy.

About Mergermarket:

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In M&A, information is the most valuable currency. Mergermarket, an Acuris company, reports on deals 6-24 months before they become public knowledge, giving our subscribers a powerful competitive advantage. With the largest network of dedicated M&A journalists and analysts, Mergermarket offers the most comprehensive M&A intelligence service available today. Our reporters are based in 67 locations across the Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. Visit mergermarket.com.