Private equity-backed M&A continued to dominate overall merger and acquisitionsactivity in the U.S. for 2006, with $328 billion in transactions in which public companies are taken private, five times the total in 2005, according to a report released today by Robert W. Baird. Private equity transactions accounted for 31% of all U.S. M&A and five of the 10 largest transactions. Also, the $215.4 billion in private equity funds raised in 2006 will result in increased private equity-backed mergers and acquisitions this year, the report noted.
In Europe this year, Baird predicts that private equity firms will contribute to increased mergers and acquisitions, especially in Germany, where "there is a growing acceptance of private equity transactions."
