Know What's Happening in M&A
Know What's Happening in M&A
Cambridge Savings Bank, a depositor‑owned institution with $6.9 billion in assets, has bolstered its capital base and is now prepared to pursue regional acquisitions. Equity rose 16% to $703.5 million and deposits grew 3.6% to $5.57 billion, driven by its digital arm Ivy Bank. CEO Ryan Bailey says the bank wants optionality to buy a neighboring rival, citing its "fortress" balance sheet and recent cash‑rich acquisitions. The move follows a busy year of consolidation among Boston‑area community banks.
AI talent wars continue 👀 Dec 3: Anthropic acquires Bun Dec 8: Meta acquires Limitless Dec 29: Meta acquires Manus Jan 12: OpenAI acquires Torch Feb 15: OpenAI acqui-hires OpenClaw Feb 25: Anthropic acquires Vercept Mar 9: OpenAI acquires Promptfoo Mar 10: Meta acqui-hires Moltbook Mar 19: OpenAI acquires...
A California federal judge is hearing a challenge from Democratic state attorneys general to the Justice Department's clearance of Hewlett Packard Enterprise's $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks. The states argue the settlement was ineffective and corrupt, marking the first major courtroom test...
Spanish fragrance group Puig and U.S. beauty giant Estée Lauder Companies have entered talks about a possible merger, which could create a combined entity valued around $40 billion. The discussion follows a sharp decline in Estée Lauder’s share price, down nearly...
Rob Robinson warns that technology M&A teams often mistake rapid market momentum for durable marketing capability. When a product arrives at the right moment, its novelty can generate brand‑like awareness without a solid marketing org, inflating acquisition premiums. As the...
Real‑estate brokerage consolidation is speeding up, but many mergers falter because integration is overlooked. The article stresses that successful deals hinge on disciplined post‑deal planning, not just transaction terms. Acquirers who begin integration work two to three months before closing...
Komerz Ltd., a global commercial growth firm, announced the acquisition of Pathformance, a marketing measurement and attribution specialist, in a deal that values Komerz at $330 million post‑transaction. The merger combines Komerz’s end‑to‑end commerce platform with Pathformance’s unified measurement capabilities, creating...
The U.S. Department of Education announced it will begin rulemaking in late 2026 to streamline the regulatory pathway for college and university mergers and acquisitions. The move aims to cut the lengthy, multi‑agency approval process that has long hampered consolidation...
Lovable, the AI‑powered app‑building platform once valued at $6.6 billion, announced it is actively seeking acquisitions to bring in founder‑type teams. CEO Anton Osika posted on X that the company wants “more great teams and startups to join Lovable,” aiming to boost...
Warner Bros. Discovery CEO warned that if the Paramount‑Skydance merger fails, the company will retain $7 billion but still grapple with a $33 billion debt load. The deal is designed to combine two massive content libraries with cloud infrastructure to exploit generative‑AI...
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) is attempting to sell its Instant On networking business to satisfy a U.S. Justice Department antitrust condition tied to its planned acquisition of Juniper Networks. Court records show that the assets attracted only modest bids ranging from...
Apollo Global Management and Bain Capital have entered the auction for Continental AG’s ContiTech industrial unit, joining a crowded field of private‑equity suitors. Advent and CVC Capital Partners are collaborating on a joint bid, while Platinum Equity, KPS Capital Partners...
Ford and SK On are winding down their $11.4 billion BlueOval SK battery joint venture, prompting a delay in the planned layoffs at the Glendale, Kentucky plant. The initial cut of roughly 1,500 workers, slated for mid‑February, has been pushed back, with...
In this episode, Steve and Bruce Fretton discuss how heightened uncertainty—driven by tariffs, shifting interest rates, and tighter credit markets—has complicated middle‑market M&A. They note that private equity’s $2 trillion of undeployed capital is pushing deals forward, but valuation gaps and...
In this episode, Bruce Fenton and host Steve discuss how to structure middle‑market M&A deals amid heightened uncertainty, focusing on valuation gaps, earn‑outs, seller rollovers, and purchase‑price notes as tools to bridge price mismatches. They highlight the importance of rigorous...
Two Harbors said CrossCountry’s unsolicited $10.70‑per‑share cash offer is superior, but a higher $10.75 cash bid from an unnamed party is also on the table. The REIT would receive a $25.4 million fee if the pending $1.3 billion all‑stock merger with United...
Albertsons has issued a subpoena compelling former Kroger chief Rodney McMullen to testify in its antitrust lawsuit over the aborted $24.6 billion merger. A Delaware Chancery Court deposition is slated for April 8‑9 to assess whether Kroger exercised the required “best efforts” to...
Italian tower owner INWIT slashed its 2026 revenue outlook after TIM, Fastweb and Vodafone announced a 50:50 joint venture to build 6,000 new 5G towers, a move that conflicts with existing master services agreements. The announcement sent INWIT shares down...
Pfizer has issued a formal warning to shareholders to reject an unsolicited mini‑tender offer from Tutanota LLC, which seeks to buy up to one million shares at $32 per share—an amount that could be below market value and lacks the...
Savvy Games Group announced a $6 billion acquisition of Moonton, the developer behind Mobile Legends, from ByteDance. The deal marks one of the largest recent M&A moves in the gaming sector and underscores Saudi Arabia’s push into digital entertainment.
Cedars‑Sinai Medical Center announced the purchase of the 340,000‑square‑foot Beverly Connection shopping center for $270 million, adding roughly 10 acres directly east of its main campus. The hospital said it has no immediate plans to close the retail complex, instead viewing...
Pfizer has warned shareholders to reject an unsolicited mini‑tender offer from Tutanota LLC that seeks to buy up to 1 million shares at $32 per share, roughly 0.02% of its outstanding stock. The offer hinges on Pfizer’s price staying above $32,...
The sale of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) has entered its final stage, with two main bidders: Swedish private‑equity firm EQT and a consortium of Manipal Hospitals’ Ranjan Pai, KKR and Temasek. The Glazer family and other high‑profile suitors have withdrawn, ending...
ESPN’s acquisition of NFL Network will not eliminate the channel’s own NFL Draft telecast. Instead, Disney plans to run four distinct draft presentations—on ESPN, NFL Network, ABC, and Pat McAfee’s streaming show—through the three‑day event. All on‑air talent will become ESPN/Disney...
Mercer has completed the acquisition of AltamarCAM, a specialist in private‑equity secondaries, to fill a strategic gap in its investment‑advisory platform. The deal was discussed by Mercer’s Michael Dempsey in a Q&A with AltamarCAM founder Jose Luis Molina, emphasizing the...
Legend Internet Plc, Nigeria’s first listed ISP, announced a merger with market‑leader Spectranet, targeting completion in Q2 2026 pending FCCPC and NCC approval. The deal combines Legend’s listed status and fibre footprint with Spectranet’s strong wireless brand, aiming to boost network...
Bark announced it will not pursue two recent take‑private offers, opting to remain a public company. The board’s special committee concluded that the existing standalone strategy best maximizes long‑term shareholder value. The first proposal from Great Dane Ventures was withdrawn...
AI: Where VC converges with PE! Historically, outstanding venture capitalists invested in high-growth software. Top-quality private equity firms acquired companies. And the two strategies were distinct. Those two paths may be converging. @generalcatalyst just invested $13.8M to back KP Reddy to launch @ZeroRFI_...
Mngt at @HeliostarMetals adds another piece to its growing #gold story, acquiring a 100% interest in the Goldstrike project in Utah. Check out JV's list of the company's momentum already this year. Plus, his take on gold's selloff and 2 baby...
Everest Group has agreed to sell its Canadian Retail Insurance business, Everest Canada, to mutual insurer Wawanesa, with the transaction slated to close in the second half of 2026 pending regulatory approval. The deal will transfer an estimated CAD305 million (about...
Another day, another acquisition by drug wholesaler monopolist Cencora. This one is EyeSouth Partners's retina business for $1.1 billion. https://t.co/F6Cj1hXCzy
Democratic Senators Demand FCC Conduct Foreign Investment Review of Paramount-Warner Bros. Deal Over Backing by Middle Eastern Funds, China’s Tencent https://t.co/hEDGRnqwMl via @variety
Delivery Hero announced the sale of its Taiwan food‑delivery business to Grab for $600 million in cash. The divestiture is the fifth asset monetization since the company launched a strategic review in December 2025. Management said the transaction will sharpen focus on...
United Health Services completed the acquisition of virtual behavioral health platform Talkspace at $5.25 per share, valuing the company at roughly $835 million enterprise value. The purchase brings about 6,000 licensed clinicians into UHS’s network, directly addressing chronic staffing shortages and...
Poste Italiane has submitted a €10.8 billion offer to acquire Telecom Italia, Italy’s largest fixed‑line operator. The postal group already controls 27.3% of TIM after buying shares from former major shareholder Vivendi. TIM’s fixed‑line network has already been sold to a...
Mike Barker, CEO of House of Cheatham, paused the sale process for 90 days to shore up the company’s financial and operational profile before accepting a private‑equity offer. During the pause he produced a quality‑of‑earnings report, commissioned an environmental study,...
Primary Wave Music has agreed to acquire Kobalt, a leading independent publishing and technology platform, in a deal valued at over $1.5 billion. Brookfield will co‑invest, reinforcing a partnership that began with a $2 billion funding arrangement in 2022. Kobalt will stay...
Romanian telecoms operator Digi Communications, through its UK subsidiary Fiber One, has acquired a 51% stake in the non‑operational fibre builder Whyfibre. The purchase gives Digi control of a nascent fibre network spanning Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire, with pilot broadband services...
West Kitikmeot Resources Corp. secured a C$10 million (US$7.4 million) investment from Calgary‑based ATCO Ltd., granting the infrastructure firm a 40 % equity stake. The funding will support the staged development of the Grays Bay Road and Port Project, an all‑season 230‑km road...
Rootstock, the cloud ERP specialist backed by Gryphon Investors, announced the acquisition of Ascent Solutions, a provider of Salesforce‑based ERP and operational applications. The deal adds Ascent’s suite of cloud solutions to Rootstock’s portfolio, strengthening its position on the Salesforce...
Private equity firm Olympus Partners announced the sale of EyeSouth’s retina business for $1.1 billion. EyeSouth, a U.S.-based management services organization for eye‑care providers, will transfer its retina platform to an undisclosed buyer. The transaction underscores strong valuation multiples in specialty...
Electronic Arts is courting investors for a $15 billion debt package that will fund its acquisition by a consortium of private‑equity firms. The financing proposal emphasizes roughly $700 million in annual cost‑saving synergies that the new owners expect to recognize as earnings....
Paramount Skydance has agreed to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery for $77 billion per share, valuing the combined company at roughly $110 billion after debt. The transaction places CNN and CBS News under the same corporate roof for the first time, opening the door to...
Sony Group is close to finalising a roughly $1 billion transaction that would transfer a majority stake in its home‑entertainment division to Chinese TV maker TCL Electronics. Negotiations have progressed to an advanced stage, with both parties targeting an announcement later...
California Coast Credit Union CEO Todd Lane is embroiled in a rare, combative merger dispute with San Diego County Credit Union (SDCCU). After SDCCU attempted to renegotiate the April 2025 deal and install its own CEO, Cal Coast sued, alleging breach of the...
Swedish investment firm Maha Capital AB announced it will acquire an indirect 24% stake in Venezuela’s PetroUrdaneta, a joint venture operating Maracaibo basin fields. The acquisition follows the U.S. Treasury’s issuance of General License 52, which relaxes sanctions on certain...
Sweden‑listed H100 Group signed a letter of intent to acquire Norwegian Bitcoin firms Moonshot and Never Say Die in an all‑stock transaction, adding roughly 2,450 BTC to its holdings. The deal would raise H100’s total to about 3,501 Bitcoin, valued...
A Fifth Circuit panel denied the FTC’s request for a stay, activating a district court ruling that vacates the 2024 HSR filing form. As a result, the FTC’s Premerger Notification Office will again accept the pre‑February 10 2025 HSR form, though filers...
Airbus has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Ultra Cyber Ltd, adding over 200 cyber specialists and a UK‑based centre of excellence to its portfolio. The deal bolsters Airbus Defence and Space’s Connected Intelligence unit and deepens its sovereign cyber...
Danone announced plans to acquire UK‑based meal‑replacement brand Huel, a move that bolsters its Renew strategy and expands its foothold in the fast‑growing complete nutrition segment. Huel reported over £200 m in revenue and nearly £14 m of pre‑tax profit for the...
