Global insurance M&A activity hits 10-year high

Written by Adam Cadle

27/02/2023

M&A activity in the global insurance space hit a ten-year high in 2022, with 449 deals completed compared to 418 the previous year, according to Clyde & Co.

Deals that were put on hold during the pandemic continued to come to market, maintaining the upswing in deal-making that began in 2021, the firm’s latest research showed.

The Americas remain the perennial front-runner in terms of M&A volume – driven in the main by the US. The region saw a stand-out first six months before activity dropped back in the second half of the year. Asia-Pacific was the only region that saw increases in M&A across 2022, propelling its year-on-year total up by almost half. The Middle East and Africa region also saw an increase in its annual total, albeit from a low base, primarily driven by a busy H1 2022. Although the annual volume of deals in Europe exceeded the total for 2021, the region has seen consecutive periods of declining activity.

While ‘mega-deals’ in the insurance M&A market – those valued in excess of $1bn – have struggled to get off the start line in the past 12 months, there is an expectation that this year could see the return of large M&A transactions, the report said.

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