Latin American M&A hits a 10-year high of $105 bln`

Mergers and acquisitions in Latin America have now crossed US$105 billion during the first nine months of the year. 

Analysts at Refinitiv Data have indicated that this is the highest deal volume in a decade, as a huge volume of fresh capital spurred a rush of big-money deals in the region.

“Proceeds of IPOs and share offerings have financed acquisitions in a range of industries, such as healthcare, oil, and gas, power, fintechs, and retail”, said Ricardo Bellissi, co-head of investment banking at Goldman Sachs in Brazil.

Even as the equity markets in Latin America continue to suffer volatility, higher inflation, and interest rates, especially in Brazil, where preparations are ongoing for a presidential election next year, most analysts do not expect a drop in near-term M&A.

After raising US$25 billion in equity offerings this year and almost US$30 billion last year, Latin American firms have the required liquidity to finance M&A.

“Even with higher inflation, interest rates rising and an election in Brazil next year, the deal flow is expected to remain strong”, said Bruno Amaral, head of M&A at Banco BTG Pactual.