Merger and acquisition (M&A) activity in Ireland fell sharply in the first half of 2020, according to figures from legal firm William Fry.

Its figures, compiled in association with Mergermarket, show that there were 65 deals worth a total of €2 billion during the six-month period. The value of deals fell 26%, while the number of deals was down 29%.

'Lowest watermarks'

53 of those transactions featured overseas buyers, who invested €1.9bn, or 95% of the total, during the first half of the year.

William Fry’s head of corporate and M&A, Stephen Keogh (pictured), said 2020 was likely to represent one of the lowest, if not the lowest, watermarks in M&A since the global financial crisis more than a decade ago.

“A significant decline in Irish M&A activity was to be expected, yet these falls are far less than the global decline in M&A where deal value sunk by 53% over the same period,” he said.

Decawave

The figures show that activity in the middle of the market – deals worth €5m to €250m - represented almost 90% of the deals done in the period. William Fry said that, in contrast to most previous years, there were no deals worth more than €500m.

The largest deal of the period was the sale of Dublin semiconductor firm Decawave to US-based Qorvo for a reported €363m while the next largest was Eircom’s €300m sale of its tower assets, Emerald Tower, to Blackstone Group's telecom infrastructure owner Phoenix Tower.

Optimistic

Mr Keogh said there was reason to be cautiously optimistic about a gradual rise in deal-making in the second half of the year, though he warned that this would depend on the recovery of the global economy and the path of COVID-19 in Ireland.

He added that, in the light of the pandemic challenges, Ireland’s technology and pharma expertise would help it to remain particularly attractive to investors.