- Global M&A surged in 2025, with mega-deals over $10B more than doubling as lower financing costs and cross-border activity lifted volumes.
- Goldman Sachs led advisory rankings, handling $1.48T of deals (about 32% share) and earning $4.6B in fees driven by large transactions.
- Consolidation accelerated in asset management and major sectors, highlighted by $38B of US asset-manager deals, Bank of America’s $40B Kenvue bid, and talks around a Rio Tinto–Glencore tie-up.
- Banks expect deal momentum into 2026 as geopolitical, supply-chain, and policy uncertainty pushes firms toward M&A for scale and resilience.
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Oversight of M&A landscape in 2025 reveals an inflection point: deal size, frequency of large ticket transactions and cross‐border activity all rose markedly. One central driver was the increase in financing capacity—lower interest rates softened capital costs—and enhanced risk in the operating environment pushed corporates to move fast for scale or defensibility.
From an investment banking perspective, the benefits accrued most strongly to firms that can lead mega‐deals. Goldman Sachs claimed both value and fee leadership, capitalizing on its capability to underwrite and coordinate transactions exceeding $10 billion. Smaller boutiques and regional banks trailed in top‐tier fee capture despite rising deal count.
Asset management consolidation also gained momentum: US asset managers saw their most active M&A year since 1980 in terms of deal count (378 deals) and deal value ($38 billion), responding to margin compression, rising cost bases, and competition from passive and AI-powered offerings. Major cross‐sector consolidation deals—in consumer health (Kimberly-Clark/Kenvue), mining (Rio/Glencore), diagnostics (Waters/BD), and pharma (Novartis/Avidity)—reflect firms reshaping portfolios to gain leverage in growth or defend against disruption.
Strategic challenges are rising: integration risks, antitrust scrutiny (despite loosening in the US), regulatory risk in cross-border deals, and capital constraints will test deal success. Firms with scale, operational depth, advisory strength and cross-sector expertise are best positioned for upside. Key players are positioning ahead—e.g. JPMorgan’s activity and leadership hires.
Supporting Notes
- Goldman Sachs advised on $1.48 trillion in global deals in 2025, representing about 32% of total M&A deal value, and was paid $4.6 billion in advisory fees—ranking first by value and fee revenue.
- There were 68 deals worldwide in 2025 valued over $10 billion, totaling about $1.5 trillion—more than double the number and value of such mega-deals in 2024.
- US asset managers closed 378 M&A deals in 2025, totaling $38 billion—more than twice the deal value in 2024—with key deals like Trian’s take-private of Janus Henderson ($7.4 billion) among the largest.
- Kimberly-Clark announced a $40 billion acquisition of Kenvue, which, when closed, will elevate its footprint in global health and wellness products.
- Analytical advisors have forecasted continued M&A momentum in 2026, driven by geopolitical risks, supply chain disruptions, and uncertainty in policy, making large M&A a hedge against disruption.
- The potential merger of Rio Tinto and Glencore (valuation over $200 billion) is in exploration stages; investment banks are already positioning for advisory fees exceeding $100 million under UK takeover rules, with February 5 as a potential formal offer deadline.