M&A in 2011 : New take off announced
After the annoucement of very strong result for the profits of companies at the end of 2010 and of more robust growth expected in 2011, we can now talk of a spectacular rebound when compared with the awful 2009. For sure the financial SOS of Greece and Ireland followed by the concerns for Portugal and Spain do maintain a real uncertainty on the health of public finances in Europe.
As a result, taxes on capital gains have increased in France from 30.1% to 31.3% (including CSG /CRDS) at the beginning of 2011.
According to Thomson Reuters, the market in the world for M&A has improved by 23% in 2010, thanks partly to lower comparables for 2009, but is still 16% below 2008 levels and 40% below 2007 levels.
Despite the restart of strategic activities in the summer of 2010, the year was a transition one that witnessed the resomption of investment growth by companies and the return of confidence.
The French IT sector has demonstrated its dynamism and M&A activity has improved by 26% thanks to 119 completed transactions, of course still 32% behind the 2008 levels. 2010 has also seen significant international expansion from several large French IT groups such as Dassault Systems, Cap Gemini and of course Atos who has become the number one player in Europe after its acquisition of Siemens IS.
We believe that, the acceleration of growth in the last quarter of 2010 and at the beginning of 2011, the return of private equity players, the new appetite of industrial buyers, the expected growth in IT investments by large customers and of course the reduction in uncertainty, will enable 2011 to benefit from these improved market conditions and see a significant increase in the number of completed transactions.
