Mergers & Acquisitions in Asia-Pacific: Good News Flowing for M&A in Q2 2021

Asia-Pacific (APAC) is still riding a wave of strength in new mergers and acquisitions (M&A). A continuation of momentum that has been building since mid-2020, cross-border deals, which slowed a bit last year, are picking up in Japan. Other countries are seeing increased IPO activity.

The due diligence gap is still prevalent across APAC though, aggravated by the constraints and challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even though many parts of the region, like South Korea, bounced back fairly quickly, physical site visits, which are still in favor, have slowed down the due diligence process.

In Japan and India, for example, photo/video-only site “visits” have triggered skepticism. Cross border deals have become harder here — even with Hong Kong bankers willing to include quarantine into their visit process.

Sectors are already shining

By sector, APAC’s standout industries vary by locale: Energy and Pharma show strength in India, while in Japan Manufacturing is dominating. There’s a pickup in Infrastructure, Consumer Goods, Hotel and RE is also showing increasing demand. Elsewhere, TMT and Health care are shining.

Overall, M&A in APAC will have a busy Q2 2021, as heightened cross-border activity pairs with corporate restructurings and capital market activity residual from COVID-19 2020.

Discover the global and regional M&A market prediction in the Q2 2021 SS&C Intralinks Deal Flow Predictor. Independently verified as a highly accurate six-month forecast of merger and acquisition (M&A) activity, the quarterly report is compiled by tracking early-stage M&A transactions globally that are in preparation or have begun due diligence.

Along with our forecast of M&A activity for the next six months, the latest issue includes a look at how global approaches to antitrust may shape Big Tech’s landscape going forward. There’s also an insightful interview with Executive Investments and M&A Director Europe and Brazil at EDP Renováveis (EDPR) Raquel Perez Martinez. In the piece, Raquel discusses the surge in transactions across the renewable energy sector — and what promise environmental, social and governance (ESG) holds for M&A.