UK leads the way in European M&A

Ernst & Young's quarterly tech M&A tracker names UK as Europe's most active acquirer

Sales on: The number of UK M&As within the IT sector has risen this quarter

The UK IT sector has seen a marked increase this year in the number of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) taking place, research claims.

According to the latest quarterly Global Technology M&A report from accountancy firm Ernst & Young, 40 acquisitions took place in the UK during the second quarter of 2010. This figure represents an increase of a third on the same period last year.

The figures mark the UK out as having the most acquisitive technology sector in Europe, according to Ernst & Young. In global terms, its performance was bettered only by the US.

Additionally, half of UK M&A taking place during Q2 involved an overseas buyer, up from a third during the previous quarter.

Neil Hutt, technology transaction partner at Ernst & Young UK, said: “M &A is very much back on the agenda, and it is great to see so much activity in the UK at the moment.

“There appears to be a healthy mix of inbound investment and UK businesses looking for inorganic growth.”

On a global scale, the report shows that the number of deals taking place in Q2 was up 43 per cent on last year, but remained flat compared to the previous quarter.

The value of the deals struck has risen by 32 per cent year on year, with seven buyouts topping the $1bn mark during Q2, up from just two buyouts in Q1.

“Even though big-ticket deals returned in the second quarter, we also saw a variety of companies, large and small, continuing to execute many small strategic transactions,” added Hutt.