July 2022 We highlight the key UK & European M&A trends in H2 2021 and H1 2022, and provide our insights into the outlook for M&A moving forward.
We highlight the key UK & European M&A trends in H2 2021 and H1 2022, and provide our insights into the outlook for M&A moving forward.
Key highlights from H2 2021 include the following:
High levels of M&A across the UK and Europe, notwithstanding uncertainty ignited by the Russia/Ukraine conflict. Europe's banks have emerged from COVID-19 turmoil resolute in their ambitions to shed non-core assets, consolidate regional strongholds and rigorously pursue digitalisation strategies
Europe has bucked the global trend of tightening private capital purse strings. While successful funding rounds rage on, fintechs with critical mass are deploying M&A strategies to consolidate horizontally and integrate vertically
With over 350 deals in the European AWM sector in 2021, M&A consolidation activity is hotter than it has ever been in the past 15 years. Conventional wisdom is now under the microscope—is bigger really better?
Investor appetite is at an all-time high—while VC investors back growing service providers, PE investors supercharge IPO glide paths and established banks refuse to abdicate market share
Europe's FMI goes digital—data analytics, capital markets solutions, RegTech and DLT-based tech acquisitions feed the steady stream of M&A activity
Marginal improvement in investor sentiment for high-quality brokers, particularly across online brokerage, crypto trading and carbon credit trading
BNPL steals the show—20 successful European BNPL provider funding rounds in the past 12 months, covering the full spectrum from Seed through to late-stage
Marginal uptick in M&A levels in the past 12 months, with property, automotive and revenue-based finance attracting the most investor interest
UK & European Financial Services M&A: Sector trends H2 2021 | H1 2022 — Payments
Investor appetite is at an all-time high—while VC investors back growing service providers, PE investors supercharge IPO glide paths and established banks refuse to abdicate market share
Extreme M&A activity to continue, as cashless payments become the new norm in the post COVID 19 world. We have all said it at one time or another: "Sorry, I don't usually carry cash."
White & Case advised Pollinate, the UK-based merchant acquiring pioneer, on: its US$20 million Series C follow-on funding round, led by Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce; and its US$30 million Series C+ funding round, supported by existing investors including Insight Partners, NatWest, NAB, EFM Asset Management and Fiserv.
White & Case advised Nets, one of Europe's largest payments providers, on its acquisition of paytec GmbH.
White & Case advised the New York Stock Exchange–listed payments platform Paysafe on its acquisition of German payments infrastructure provider viafintech.
White & Case advised Tink, a leading Nordic open banking platform provider, on its €1.7 billion sale to Visa.
White & Case advised Banc of America Strategic Investments Corporation, the venture capital arm of Bank of America, as lead investor in the US$20 million Series A funding round of Banked.
White & Case advised QIA on its US$200 million acquisition of a minority interest in Airtel Mobile Commerce, a subsidiary of London Stock Exchange–listed Airtel Africa.
91.1% of all eligible UK card transactions in 2021 were made contactlessly, with the total value of contactless payments made increasing by 40.2% year-on-year. (Finextra, January 2022)
Money laundering red flags have been indicated at more than 1/3 of UK-licensed electronic money institutions. (Financial Times, December 2021)
Click here to download 'Financial institutions M&A: Sector trends — Other FS' PDF
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