Transatlantic M&A activity remains solid, says Deloitte

Major deals included Brown-Forman's purchase of BenRiach. Picture: Ian Rutherford

US investment in Scottish businesses held up in 2015 and 2016 despite turbulence in global markets and the outlook remains 'positive', new research indicates.

Analysis by accountancy giant Deloitte found that there were 40 deals in both directions in the last 24 months – the bulk of then, 28, involving US acquirers in Scotland while 12 Scottish businesses purchased assets across the Atlantic.

Across Britain, the latest “US/UK M&A Deal Monitor” showed that the manufacturing and TMT (technology, media, and telecommunications) sectors were the most active over the past two years. Meanwhile, the value of transactions with a disclosed figure topped £4.8 billion.

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Of the UK regions, excluding London and south-east England, Scotland was placed third for US outbound M&A (mergers and acquisitions), behind the east of England and north-west of England.

Among the most notable Scottish deals in 2016 were Facebook’s acquisition of Edinburgh audio specialist Two Big Ears and Brown-Forman’s £285 million purchase of the BenRiach Distillery Company.

Cahal Dowds, chairman of Deloitte’s corporate finance advisory business, said: “Globally, M&A activity has dropped in the aftermath of Brexit – an expected outcome as the levels of uncertainty increase. Nevertheless, US/UK M&A deals have remained resilient.

“The US is still investing in Scottish companies and the outlook for the next 12 months remains largely positive.”

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