Alibaba, China’s internet giant, will purchase a 10% stake of Mail.Ru, one of Russia’s largest internet companies, to expand its ecommerce reach in Russia. As part of the deal, Alibaba, Mail.Ru, telecom company MegaFon, and Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, will form a joint venture called AliExpress Russia. Alibaba will have a 48% stake in the …
Category: M&A in the News
Campbell Soup to Divest Fresh and International Businesses
Campbell plans to sell its fresh foods and international businesses to refocus on core products in North America. The fresh foods business includes brands such as Bolthouse Farms and Garden Fresh Gourmet, which were acquired in 2012 and 2015, respectively. In a time when many food and beverage companies are seeking to increase their hold …
A Wake Up Call for Starbucks? Coca-Cola Buys Coffee Chain Costa
In its latest move to diversify beyond soda, Coca-Cola is buying Costa, a UK-based coffee chain for $5.1 billion. The deal will give Coke access to the coffee market in Europe, the Middle East and Asia through Costa’s 4,000 stores. Coke plans to use its distribution network to further Costa’s expansion and challenge rivals like …
What Do Mega Deals Mean for the Middle Market?
It’s been a hot year for mergers and acquisitions with a record $2.5 trillion in deal value announced in the first six months. At least 36 deals over $10 billion in value and 81 deals valued over $5 billion were announced in the first half of 2018. Mega deals are on the rise and driving …
Intel Acquires eASIC to Expand Beyond Declining CPU Chip Market
Intel has acquired eASIC, a small company specializing in customizable chips in order to diversify beyond CPU chips that are used primarily in personal computers. As consumers move more and more to using mobile phones over personal computers, demand for Intel’s base product, CPU chips, is declining. eASIC’s 120 employees will join Intel’s programmable solutions group, …
M&A Update: 1H 2018
Global M&A value reached $2.5 trillion in the first half of 2018, an increase of 61% while the number of deals decreased by 10% when compared to the same period in 2017. This is the strongest first half since records began in 1980. Deals are getting bigger with 81 mega deals valued over $5 billion accounting …
AT&T – Time Warner Deal Gets Green Light, Expect More Media Deals
On Tuesday AT&T and Time Warner received approval for their $85 billion merger that brings together channels like CNN, HBO with the number two mobile carrier in the US. The deal is just the start of what is shaping up to be a very busy year for technology and media mergers and acquisitions. Less than …
Technology and Media Consolidation Fuels M&A Activity
As expected, mergers and acquisitions activity in 2018 is off to a strong start with deal value already reaching $2 trillion this year. Tax reform, which lowered the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% has certainly impacted activity as many companies are already putting their tax savings to work in deals. One interesting trend we’ve seen …
Competing by Acquiring – Lessons from the Walmart-Flipkart and Nestlé-Starbucks Deals
There are many reasons to execute an acquisition from entering a new market to adding a new capability to increasing your bottom line. One of the most common reasons to buy another company is to prevent your competitor from owning it. Acquiring out of a defensive position to prevent a competitor from owning a key …
The Wrong Way to Approach M&A – Singing “We’re in the Money”
By now, many of you have heard the clip of Sainsbury’s CEO caught singing “We’re in the Money” into a hot mic prior to his interview about the merger between Sainsbury and Asda. For all the corporate, flowery language touting the benefits of the merger, this unguarded moment seemed to reveal the truth to the …
