The value of deals with Middle East-based targets fell for the third consecutive month in April, reaching the lowest level recorded since July 2010, according to M&A deal tracker Bureau van Dijk (BvD), which publishes the Zephyr M&A database.
“Volume rescinded 40 per cent in just four weeks to reach the lowest number of deals recorded in the last 12 months,” said a report by BvD.
According to Zephyr data, April’s 26 deals were worth a combined $484m. By value, this was 16 per cent less than the $573m in April 2010, while volume rescinded by 59 per cent over the 12 months.
“This weak performance, coupled with the fact that the top three transactions by value were fundraisers, gives a fragile picture of M&A activity in the region,” the report said.,
There were three high-value capital increases from financial institutions in April – specifically, Waha Capital of the UAE, Bahrain’s Ahli United Bank and Syria’s Fransabank-Syria, the report pointed out. Between them, the trio accounted for the top three deals by value and announced plans to raise a combined $335m.
The largest M&A deal was Singapore’s Nordic Flow Control, an Asian marine products unit belonging to Nordic Group, picking up a 49 per cent stake in Qatari scaffolding company Multiheight International. Nordic Flow also bought two Singapore-based companies as part of the same transaction, which was worth $37m.
Jordan was the most prolific deal target with nine transactions involving companies based in the country. However, these were not high-value deals as the total value for Jordan was just $11m – compared to $170m for first-placed UAE.
Both Syria and Saudi Arabia had deal values in April 2011, though they had none in the year-ago and month-ago periods. Monthly comparisons between Middle East-based target countries do not show a consistent leader.
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