The “High Technology” sector was ranked as the top investment target for Middle Eastern investors, as well as inbound investors, by volume for H2 2020
Dealing making in 2020 within the Middle East was slower than usual, with the value of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity in the Middle East dropping 51 percent year-on-year to USD 58.7 billion in 2020 as M&A volume fell 13 percent year on year during H2 of 2020.
According to a Baker McKenzie report, ME’s deal volumes decreased by approximately 2 percent in comparison to H2 2019 while total volumes for 2020 decreased by 13 percent from 2019. There were 423 M&A deals overall in 2020, a 13 percent decrease from last year while deal value significantly dropped by 51 percent to USD 58.7 billion.
Egypt ranked second, right after the US, in H2 2020 (13 deals) for outbound transactions.
The “High Technology” sector was ranked as the top investment target for Middle Eastern investors, as well as inbound investors, by volume for H2 2020.
Deals saw a strong return near the end of the year, particularly in November 2020 when deal volumes and values jumped up to 52 deals at USD 4 billion, up 56 percent from the same month in 2019.
Smaller deals dominated the M&A market which was expected due to the COVID-19 pandemic, said Omar Momany, Partner and Head of the Corporate M&A Practice Group at Baker McKenzie Habib Al Mulla, commenting on ME’s M&A activity for the second half of 2020.
“Nevertheless, the megadeals we’ve seen in some sectors such as high technology, financial institutions, energy and power and real estate have shown that there is interest in the region and we can potentially expect to have more activity as the region and the world more generally begin to bounce back from the COVID-19 pandemic,” added Momany.
According to the report, the majority of deals in H2 2020 were cross-border transactions, with 147 deals totaling USD 9.9 billion. For the full year, the Middle East had 286 cross-border deals for USD 31.7 billion, less than the 320 deals recorded in 2019 totaling USD 38.7 billion.
There was a rise in domestic dealings, with 73 deals totaling USD 4.6 billion, compared to only 68 deals totaling USD 3.7 billion in H2 2019.
