Overseas buyers lured by a plunge in the pound are looking to snare British companies on the cheap, ensuring a steady flow of deals since Britain voted to leave the European Union and defying expectations of an M&A drought.
Almost 60 transactions totalling $34.5 billion have been struck by foreign companies for British firms since June 23, according to Thomson Reuters data, compared with 79 deals amounting to $4.3 billion in the month leading up to the vote.
This activity — dominated by Japanese group SoftBank’s $32-billion swoop for chip designer ARM Holdings — has defied warnings that dealmaking could dry up for a period if Britain backed Brexit, given uncertainty surrounding risks to the economy and access to the EU single market.
The list of British takeovers could grow after the summer, according to bankers who say they are working on possible bids on behalf of foreign companies interested in UK targets.
The SoftBank deal was hailed by the government as a sign of UK economic resilience, prompting new Prime Minister Theresa May to declare the country “open for business”.
But M&A bankers said some of the post-vote takeovers had more to do with the relatively low valuations of British companies given current exchange rates, rather than being driven by confidence in the British economy.
Sterling has taken the brunt of market concern since the Brexit vote on June 23, falling to a 31-year low in the aftermath of the vote.
“Clearly this is a buying opportunity,” said Ben Ward, head of UK corporate at law firm Herbert Smith Freehills. “People with strong currencies – dollar, renminbi, yen – will no doubt be interested in acquiring sound sterling-denominated assets.”
There have been dozens of other deals since the referendum. South African retailer Steinhoff agreed to pay nearly £600 million for British-based discount chain Poundland on July 13. It came a day after AMC Entertainment Holdings, an American company majority-owned by a Chinese conglomerate, said it would buy London-based Odeon & UCI Cinemas Group to create the world’s largest cinema operator, in a deal valued at about £921 million. On Thursday, China’s Fosun International snapped up English football club Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Defence from raids
Some M&A bankers in London say they are working closely with British companies who feel vulnerable to hostile bids from cash-rich foreign buyers, in sectors including aerospace, house building and retail. Surveys conducted in the run-up to the referendum had warned a Brexit vote would threaten M&A activity.
A study released on June 16 by Merrill Corporation, a provider of technology and services in the M&A industry, and market intelligence firm The M&A Advisor found a Brexit vote would have a “negative and tangible” near-term impact on UK dealmaking, with British companies becoming less attractive to overseas buyers.
The sectors with the highest concentration of foreign takeovers in the past four weeks were technology, consumer, industrials and media, with an overall 37 sales valued at $33 billion. Industry sources said some had roots in discussions that began well ahead of the June referendum.