The French M&A outlook for 2022

According to the business newspaper Le Figaro, companies generally remain confident. Merger and acquisition projects for the coming year are on the rise. This applies to virtually all sectors.

Many financial support plans and other exceptional measures introduced by the French government in response to the Covid-19 pandemic (e.g. state-guaranteed loans, partial activity schemes, etc.) have contained the wave of bankruptcies and maintained economic activity. In addition, central banks continue their accommodating policies, allowing companies to take on debt at historically low interest rates.

Thanks to this favourable environment, business leaders have the financial means to invest, diversify, and restructure their activities. Since the beginning of 2022, several large-scale transactions have already been concluded, including the purchase of the European car leasing leader LeasePlan by a subsidiary of the Société Générale bank on 06 January 2022, and the purchase of the developer Zynga studios by the American video game giant Take- Two Interactive on 10 January 2022. However, since the beginning of the Ukraine-Russia conflict in February 2022, an atmosphere of anxiety has spread and seems to be brutally dampening general enthusiasm. The threat of a third world war is present in everyone’s mind. The whole world is holding its breath in anticipation of the future evolution of this conflict.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has had, and will continue to have, repercussions on the global economy, especially on prices of raw materials and commodities.

In the meantime, business must continue …

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Photo: Ekaterina Belova - stock.adobe.com