Local merger, acquisition deals rose 40% in H1

MANILA  -There has been a 40-percent increase in the number of mergers and acquisitions in the Philippines in the first half of the year, with the value of these types of transactions reaching $3.4 billion during the six-month period.

This was according to a midyear report from professional services firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), which showed that there were 42 deals recorded from January to June.

It noted that this number of mergers and acquisitions is higher by 12 compared to the same period in 2022, and that it is already more than half of the 69 transactions recorded during the whole of the same year.

The transaction value of these deals also reached $3.4 billion during the six-month period, which is a little more than a third of the $9 billion seen in the entirety of 2022.

The top industries where most of these transactions occurred are in telecommunications, food and beverage, construction and renewable energy, the report noted.

“The Philippines’ [mergers and acquisitions] landscape has seen a surge in deals in the telecommunications and construction industries with the majority led by domestic investors,” the report read.

“Deals in telecommunications and real estate highlight capitalization opportunities in sectors where asset development is being prioritized. Meanwhile, numerous transactions across the food and beverage industry have demonstrated growth initiatives from local companies, along with an increased potential for international expansion,” it read further.

The PWC also noted in the report that while there were significant inbound investments from Singapore, the largest deal of the year so far came from a joint acquisition deal with Japanese trading house Mitsui & Co. Ltd.

This is the planned $874.2-million (P49 billion) buyout of all the minority shareholders of the Manuel Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Investments Corp. that own 36.6 percent of the company by a consortium that includes Mitsui, Japanese government-backed fund JOIN, First Pacific, and their Filipino partners.

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