View the financial advisory shortlist for Mergermarket's European M&A Awards 2021.

View the legal advisory shortlist for Mergermarket's European M&A Awards 2021.

Tell us the story of your year in just 300 words.

The volume of announced deals involving UK targets in the first two quarters of the year fell 68.6% compared to the same period last year, leading to the quietest start to a calendar year for dealmaking since 2009.

Mergermarket data shows that the German-speaking region ended the first half of 2020 in terms of M&A better off  than the rest of the continent. 

Regional dealmakers remain cautious about the prospects of an M&A recovery in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Nonetheless, in spite of fears surrounding a second wave of the pandemic, activity is reigniting in selected sectors, albeit under "new normal" conditions.

At the half-year stage, US dealflow was down sharply whilst China was least impacted. Megadeals declined although mid-market showed resiliency. Meanwhile, private equity's global M&A market share reached record level.

Advisors seek consensus on how much to discount pre-crisis valuations.

Private equity firms have become increasingly interested in professional sports. 

Watch Mergermarket’s Virtual Event on the M&A market outlook in Benelux in partnership with Datasite here.

Watch Mergermarket’s Virtual Event on the M&A market outlook in the CEE region here.

European M&A looks set to remain at historically low levels through 2020 with a recovery unlikely until mid-2021, as the world continues to grapple with the coronavirus pandemic and its economic consequences. 

Watch Mergermarket’s Virtual Event on the ItalianM&A outlook and the impact of Covid-19.