Grant Thornton: Number of PE deals in May highest in 3 years

The number of private equity (PE) investment deals in May was the highest in more than three years, attracting $1.1 billion.

According to Grant Thornton, 43 PE deals accounted for $1.14 billion in May, compared with 15 deals worth $0.26 billion during the year-ago period. “The volume of PE investment witnessed a significant upsurge in May, with the highest number of deals after more than three years,” said Grant Thornton India Partner and national leader (valuation services) C G Srividya, adding “there have been several large-sized deals, with four investments valued at over $100 million.”

The value of PE investments so far this year stands at $4.03 billion — twice the worth of such deals last year ($2.65 billion).

 

The number of merger and acquisition (M&A) deals in May was 55 and they were worth $4.22 billion, compared with 52 deals worth $8.11 billion in the year-ago period, the report said.

May also accounted for a number of big-ticket deals, with the top five PE deals accounting for 57 per cent of the total value of PE deals and the top five M&A deals accounting for 79 per cent of the total value of M&A deals. “There have been several high-value deals this month, with four M&A transactions valued at over a quarter billion. We have also seen several new sectors such as the shipping & ports sector and the electrical sector going for large deals,” Srividya said. The total value of M&A and PE deals in May stood at $5.38 billion through 99 deals, compared with $8.60 billion by way of 72 deals in May 2010.