US opposes M&A rules

March 31 - The Times of India (New Delhi) - The US has asked India to remove the problematic rule in its new competition law that requires foreign companies to obtain government approval for mergers and acquisitions, including those taking place outside the country. In a report submitted to the Congress, the US trade department has said it has taken up the issue with the Indian government to change the new regulation governing M&As under the amended Competition Act.

"The United States is working with industry, foreign governments, and Indian companies and industry groups to persuade the government to promulgate regulations under the new law to correct the most problematic aspects of the M&A provisions," the national trade estimate report 2008 has said. Read More.

Don’t Be Fooled by a Lull in M&A Activity, More Deals Are on the Way

March 31 - Money Morning - The U.S. buyout market is about to enter a new phase, as corporate takeovers pick up where private-equity firms left off last fall.

The deal-making market is a key to the health of the U.S. stock market. During much of 2006 and 2007, it was the steady stream of private-equity buyouts and corporate mergers and acquisitions (M&A) deals that propelled the key U.S. stock indices to one record high after another.

When the deals are flowing, investors are willing to pay more for their shares, figuring the odds for a nice payday are higher. And the deal market was white-hot through the middle half of last year. Private-equity firms had amassed huge war chests. They were buying stakes in big companies and were buying smaller companies outright. Read More.

The International Mergers & Acquisitions Review 2008 Will Provide A Far-Reaching Discussion And Analysis Of The Global M&A Market

March 27 - Business Wire - Research and Markets has announced the addition of “The International Mergers & Acquisitions Review 2008” to their offering.

The International Mergers & Acquisitions Review 2008 will provide a far-reaching discussion and analysis of the global M&A market, written by leading experts from investment banks, law firms and consultants. The next 12 months look like being eventful with several major M&A deals in the pipeline and increased activity returning to the sector.

The International Mergers & Acquisitions Review 2008 will provide the reader with a unique insight into the global M&A market by highlighting the opportunities as well as the pitfalls that face M&A practitioners in this ever changing dynamic arena. Read More.

Goldman's Ken Hitchner on healthcare M&A (video)

March 27 - Dealscape Blog (The Deal) - Ken Hitchner, the global head of Healthcare Investment Banking at Goldman, Sachs & Co., spoke with The Deal's Mary Kathleen Flynn at the Healthcare Dealmaking Symposium, where he touched on the industry's M&A prospects, debt markets and where his firm is looking internationally.

"There's an enormous amount of volatility out there now. I would say with a bit of a contrarian view that healthcare has been a bit of a port in the storm," Hitchner commented. "Healthcare M&A, especially those transactions that aren't reliant on debt markets, have been fairly robust. There's a lot of dialogue out there. A lot is going on, and it feels like it could shape up to be a reasonably good year. Watch video.

Canadian banks scouting for buying opportunities

March 27 - Dealscape Blog (The Deal) - Outperforming their American rivals these days -- thanks to the U.S. credit crisis -- Canada's banks are on the prowl for acquisitions south of the border -- but don't expect them to ride to the aid of troubled U.S. banks. Reuters reported Wednesday that Royal Bank of Canada, the country's largest lender, is cautiously eyeing the M&A landscape to the south, though it is not interested in buying an investment or corporate bank, but rather wealth management and private banking.

"Yes, we are interested in being an opportunistic buyer, but not in the capital markets side of the business," RBC president and CEO Gordon Nixon told a Canadian financial services conference in Toronto. Although RBC is primarily looking at wealth managers, Nixon added, however, that banks are always considering large, transformational deals. Read More.

Tech M&A: It'll Be a Good Year

As company valuations tumble, big players like eBay and Oracle see lots of potential bargains, while targets see fewer buyout alternatives

Executives at eBay know a bargain when they see one. For Lorraine McDonough, eBay's mergers chief, 2008 is shaping up to be a good year to go shopping. Banks are reining in credit, relegating competing private equity firms to the sidelines, and stocks are tumbling, taking a bite out of asset prices. "We are in a good position to make acquisitions," McDonough says.

The e-commerce company kicked off the year with the purchase of payment-security firm Fraud Sciences for $169 million and expects to make eight or nine acquisitions this year, roughly twice the usual target tally, McDonough says. Read More.

Health Care Services M&A Posts Second-Highest Dollar Level in 2007, According to Irving Levin Associates, Inc.

March 25 - Business Wire - Merger and acquisition activity in the health care industry’s service sectors moderated in 2007 after the record year set in 2006. A total of 489 deals were announced in nine sectors of the health care services industry, down 8% from the 534 deals announced in 2006. Even though the dollar value of those deals declined 37% from $90 billion in 2006 to $57 billion in 2007, 2007 still outspent every other year. “While the M&A market for health care services rode a bull market from 2003 through the middle of 2007, the recent crisis in the credit markets tempered activity in the second half of the year. Still, our figures reveal that 2007 is the second-largest year ever in terms of dollars committed to health care services M&A,” commented Sandy Steever, editor of The Health Care Acquisition Report, Fourteenth Edition. “While the credit crisis sidelined a number of financial buyers toward the end of 2007, especially private equity firms, strategic buyers, who had avoided bidding wars with financial buyers, entered and picked up the slack in the market. The relative absence of financial buyers appears to have depressed acquisition pricing from the middle of 2007 through the present,” continued Mr. Steever. Read More.

Questioning California’s Pension Fund Bill

March 25 - N.Y. Times Blog (DealBook) - Many in the buyout industry are taking a skeptical view of a California bill that would bar Calpers and CalSTRS, two of the nation’s largest pension funds, from allocating funds to private equity firms that have sold stakes to sovereign wealth funds.

The bill is co-sponsored by the Service Employees Union International, a union that has loudly criticized many of the largest buyout firms, arguing that their leveraged buyouts are hurting the average worker. In proposing the measure, the union sought to draw attention to the questionable human-rights records of some of the countries whose government-controlled funds, known as sovereign wealth funds, have invested in American buyout firms.

Charlene Davidson of RSM EquiCo Capital Markets suggested the legislation is a knee-jerk reaction to the increased activity from foreign state-sponsored investment funds. “It appears to be more of a reactionary maneuver than a research-based action,” she told the Digest. Read More.

Discussing Bear Stearns’ Deal

March 20 - DealBook Blog (NY Times) - The audacious government-orchestrated purchase of Bear Stearns by JPMorgan Chase has dominated headlines and chatter this week. To say there are a plethora of angles to cover — the $2-a-share price, the role of the government, the challenges in closing the deal — is an understatement.

The day after the deal was announced, DealBook’s Andrew Ross Sorkin spoke with Charlie Rose about the history, the context and the intricacies of the takeover. Ultimately, however, the deal will be remembered as either the crowning achievement of JPMorgan’s James Dimon as “the new J.P. Morgan” or as “the grand theft of our century.” Watch video.

Healthcare symposium insights: Dance of the pharma-biotech dealmakers

March 20 - Corporate Dealmaker (The Deal) - The creative use of bio-bucks, trends in due diligence and the latest on the balance of power in the industry were the key takeaways Wednesday when dealmakers from four prominent companies shared their thoughts in a couple of sessions at The Deal's Healthcare Dealmaking Symposium in New York.

It's no secret that the medicine business has long been characterized by an elaborate pas de trois performed by Big Pharma, biotech and the financial markets. What attendees saw were some of the very latest moves in this long-running dance.

Representing big pharmas that are working to restructure, divest and replenish their pipelines were Robert Knowles, who works in biz dev for Pfizer Inc., and Charles Simmons, who does the same for Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. Also on hand was June Nguyen of Eisai Inc., who has played a big role as the Japanese pharma has built its U.S. presence and used biotech acquisitions to build an oncology business. On the biotech side was Annarie Lyles, head of biz dev for Genmab Inc. Read more and view video clips.

Consumer-Directed Healthcare: Transforming the M&A Market (audio)

March 20 - PedTech - Join BearingPoint Senior Manager Kirsten Trusko in this podcast to explore consumer-directed health care and how it is affecting the mergers and acquisitions market. A rush of M&A activity is under way at the convergence of the banking, insurance and health industries. Companies in all three areas, as well as private equity and venture capital firms, are looking to capitalize on the market dynamics emerging with the growth of consumer-directed health care and the emerging vertical market of “health banking.”

The Deal: Healthcare Dealmaking with Steve Elek (podcast)

March 14 - PodTech - Deals in healthcare M&A have soared over the past two years, continuing to attract capital and drive activity in the sector. Industry insiders are monitoring the current pace of healthcare M&A deals and developing an outlook for 2008.

Mining M&A activity hits new peak - 19th March 2008

March 19 - Platinum Today - PricewaterhouseCoopers' latest report shows that the level of mergers and acquisitions in the mining sector has reached "unprecedented levels".

According to the firm, the trend can be accounted for by the optimistic outlook for the industry in terms of growth and profitability, while high commodity prices are also a factor.

Indeed, the report noted that even the credit crunch would fail to slow deal activity down. Read More.

Alan Schwartz's Web Of Lies

March 19 - DealBreaker Blog - So it seems some people are really getting bent out of shape over this whole thing about Bear Stearns CEO Alan Schwartz telling David Faber everything was cool at the firm just a few short days before everything wasn’t cool. Read More.

Bear Stearns' recent IPOs and M&A deals

March 17 - Reuters - JPMorgan Chase struck a deal on Sunday to bail out Wall Street's fifth biggest bank Bear Stearns for $2 a share in a deal backed by the Federal Reserve.

Here's a list of initial public offerings and M&A deals that Bear Stearns is advising or underwriting. All information is provided by Dealogic. Read More.

Many Middle Market Companies With Global Operations Have Found Success and Intend to Expand Overseas, KPMG Survey Finds

58 percent of US middle market execs surveyed plan to expand globally in next five years, with downturn in U.S. economy possibly accelerating rate of expansion

March 11 - PRNewswire - Overseas markets are proving fruitful for middle market companies and, facing a declining U.S. economy, many are intending to expand globally, according to a survey by KPMG LLP, the U.S. audit, tax and advisory firm.

KPMG's Global Enterprise Institute, dedicated to global middle market companies, surveyed 1,013 executives from middle market companies in 10 cities across the country in December and January to gauge success overseas, to assess plans for future expansion and to better understand key challenges and risks. In doing so, KPMG found that 58 percent of middle market executives plan to expand their global presence in the next five years, compared with 33 percent who expressed that they will maintain their current size. Read More.

Bear Stearns: Can Its Investment Bankers Find a Job in This Market?

March 16 - WSJ - There is never a good time to lose a job. Still, for Bear Stearns’ investment bankers, this would be one of the worst.

Bear Stearns is selling itself for only $236 million to J.P. Morgan Chase, a discounted valuation that is a pittance compared even to Bear’s already-emaciated $3.4 billion market capitalization. Such a cheap price doesn’t bode well for the future of the investment bank, or the people who work there.

The trouble is, this might be the worst market to find an investment-banking job since 1990. Layoffs are sweeping the Street, with many more to come, according to bankers. Read More.

Mergers & Acquisitions 2007: Food & Beverage

March 12 - Food Processing (Blog) - The upward pace of mergers & acquisitions in the food industry continued in 2007, with a total of 413 transactions completed during the year and an additional 60 agreed upon, but not yet closed by the end of the year, according to Elmwood Park, N.J.-based The Food Institute, which has been tracking food business mergers & acquisitions for over 25 years. This compares to the 392 deals that were completed in 2006, along with the 59 that were under agreement at the end of that year.

Food processors again led the way, with 94 deals closed and another 16 in development, although the total number of transactions in this category fell 14.5 percent from 2006. Investment firms and banks were the second most active group, acquiring 89 food companies. Retailers were also aggressive, with 79 transactions, as were restaurants with 57 deals completed. Read More.

Many Middle Market Companies With Global Operations Have Found Success and Intend to Expand Overseas, KPMG Survey Finds

March 11 - PRNewswire - Overseas markets are proving fruitful for middle market companies and, facing a declining U.S. economy, many are intending to expand globally, according to a survey by KPMG LLP, the U.S. audit, tax and advisory firm.

KPMG's Global Enterprise Institute, dedicated to global middle market companies, surveyed 1,013 executives from middle market companies in 10 cities across the country in December and January to gauge success overseas, to assess plans for future expansion and to better understand key challenges and risks. In doing so, KPMG found that 58 percent of middle market executives plan to expand their global presence in the next five years, compared with 33 percent who expressed that they will maintain their current size.

In addition, 41 percent of the surveyed executives felt that their company has been successful at achieving its global expansion objectives over the past two years, compared to 20 percent who indicated limited success. The global aspect of their business strategy was also expected to increase, with 39 percent indicating that global expansion is an integral part to their company's growth strategy. Read More.

UBS sees metals, mining M&A but IPOs stall

March 12 - Reuters (U.K.) - The outlook for mergers and acquisitions in the metals and mining industry is strong as emerging market players bulk up and competition for the earth's dwindling resources intensifies, a top sector banker said on Wednesday.

"On the M&A front, generally speaking, the credit situation looks pretty awful but there seems to be money for mining companies and partly that is because commodities prices are high and there is growing acceptance of the super-cycle theory," UBS's joint global head of metals and mining Paul Knight said.

Miners could also borrow more easily than other companies because they had high earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization and low net debt, Knight told the Reuters global mining summit in London. Read More.

Food Industry Mergers & Acquisitions Continued Upward Trend In 2007, Food Institute Analysis Shows

March 11 - Business Wire - The upward pace of mergers & acquisitions in the food industry continued in 2007, with a total of 413 transactions completed during the year and an additional 60 agreed upon, but not yet closed by the end of the year, according to The Food Institute, which has been tracking food business mergers & acquisitions for over 25 years. This compares to the 392 deals that were completed in 2006, along with the 59 that were under agreement at the end of that year.

Food processors again led the way, with 94 deals closed and another 16 in development, although the total number of transactions in this category fell 14.5% from 2006. Investment firms and banks were the second most active group, acquiring 89 food companies. Retailers were also aggressive, with 79 transactions, as were restaurants with 57 deals completed.

The trends were revealed in the just released Food Business Mergers & Acquisitions publication, a 265-page compendium of all such transactions that occurred in the food industry during 2007. Read More.

Freeport sees M&A, high copper

March 11 - Reuters - Copper prices should stay high despite a slowing U.S. economy, as China keeps buying the metal and big miners gobble up smaller, capital-hungry rivals, the head of Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc said on Monday.

"We're actively looking for exploration projects around the world because we have such a positive outlook for copper," Chief Executive Officer Richard Adkerson told the Reuters Global Mining Summit in New York.

"The industry will continue to consolidate; it's just inevitable because of the lack of investment opportunities," he said, when asked about the credit crunch that is making it difficult for companies to raise capital. Read More.

Oil and Gas Mergers Will Climb This Year, Waterous Says

March 6 - Bloomberg - The pace of global oil and gas acquisitions will increase this year, sparked by soaring oil prices, the head of Bank of Nova Scotia's oil advisory unit said.

Mergers are going to be ``super-active in the energy space, specifically in the oil and gas industry,'' Scotia Waterous Vice Chairman and President Adam Waterous said in an interview.

With "hundreds and hundreds" of small oil and gas companies competing for the same business, and crude oil for April delivery surpassing $100 a barrel, it's inevitable that companies will continue to get taken over, Waterous said. There were 848 oil and gas purchases announced last year worth $118.4 billion, according to Bloomberg data. Read More.

M&A trends: Slowing economy spurs divestitures

March 7 - The Deal - In the last six to nine months, says Jeff Greene, economic conditions have led to an increase in divestitures. Greene, Americas leader for Sell-Side Advisory Services at Ernst & Young LLP, spoke with me about the recent activity in the marketplace.

The slow growth in the economy has many shareholders focusing on how to allocate capital, resulting in more carve-outs, spinoffs and divestitures, according to Greene. "There is still an expectation among company shareholders to grow organically from existing operations," he says. "More shareholders may be more inclined to divest now because of the cost of capital increasing, the cost of debt going up and equity concerns because of increased volatility." Read More (subscription required).

M&A Activity May Add Some Sunshine to the Gloomy Markets

March 9 - Money Morning - Even though half of last year was plagued by a credit crisis, 2007 was the best year ever for worldwide merger and acquisition deals.

Total global deal volume checked in at $4.5 trillion, up 24% from the previous high-water mark set in 2006. U.S. deal volume also hit record levels last year, jumping 9% to reach $1.61 trillion, according to Thomson Financial. Read More.

Forget Those Big Deals (and Headlines): Private Equity Firms Are Shopping the Middle Market

March 5 - Knowledge@Wharton - Big buyout firms like the Blackstone Group and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts do headline-grabbing transactions and collect eye-popping paychecks. But when the economy slows down and lenders turn wary, those mega-deals are the first to dry up.

Meanwhile, the modest middle market -- typically deals in the $500 million to $1 billion range -- keeps plugging along, according to investors who gathered at the 2008 Wharton Private Equity Conference. These transactions may not get talked up on CNBC's "Squawk Box"or written about in Barron's, but they also don't depend on the availability of cheap credit and the lending appetite of big banks like Citigroup and Bank of America. In fact, the middle-market specialists who spoke on a panel titled, "Middle Market: Calmer Waters or Sea of Competition?" argued that they are, to some extent, insulated from the current credit crisis and other economic ups and downs. Read More.

Get Absorbed: Being acquired can be a very good thing for your business

March 4 - U.S. News & World Report - Enpocket is a 6-year-old software company that helps businesses create and send advertisements to mobile phone users, then monitor data such as click-through rates. The multimillion-dollar company's customer base includes MasterCard and Sprint. "What we're really working on is Web 3.0—what's next for the internet," says former CEO Mike Baker, 44.

What's next for Enpocket? In October, Nokia closed a deal to acquire the Boston-based company for an undisclosed sum as the phone maker moves into the software and services business. "We're a part of that transformation effort," says Baker, whose new title since the acquisition is vice president and head of mobile advertising.

Today, big companies use M&A as a shortcut to new channels, new content, new customers and new competencies. More than $10.5 billion in M&A transactions were announced in the third quarter of 2007 alone—31 percent higher than the third quarter of 2006 and the most in a single quarter since 2000, according to Dow Jones Venture One. Read More.

RSM to conduct survey on SMEs

March 3 - The Star Online (Malaysia) - RSM Strategic Business Advisors Sdn Bhd plans to conduct a survey on Malaysian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the middle market players by next month.

Executive director Girish Ramachandran said that having reported on the global front for middle enterprises, the local middle market enterprise survey was part of its efforts to create a value-added report in Malaysia.

“Our business strategy is to complement and drive the potential market growth of the local middle market enterprises,” he told StarBiz. Read More.

Cross-border M&As since 2002 to attract cap gains tax

March 1 - The Economic Times (India) - On the face of it, nothing seems to have changed for India Inc. Buoyant tax revenues and better compliance haven’t influenced the finance minister enough to prune the corporate tax rate, or even the surcharge. But, for overseas firms, acquiring companies in India just got costlier.

The FM may not have spelled it out in his speech, but the Budget fine-print reveals that the government has opened the doors for taxing cross-border deals. And that too with retrospective effect from June 2002.

The onus of paying capital gains tax on an acquisition in India will now rest with the buyer. The buyer is expected to deduct tax at source and failure to do so would leave him liable to pay the tax. Read More.