Trade chaos drives first-half privatisation to US$1.8 trillion as world braces for turmoil
More than half of the 10 largest deals announced in 2025 have involved a private target, data compiled by Bloomberg show
Big money takeovers of private companies helped drive mergers and acquisitions in the first half, as deal makers got comfortable writing sizeable cheques in topsy-turvy markets.
More than half of the 10 largest deals announced in 2025 have involved a private target, data compiled by Bloomberg show, including the tie-up of Charter Communications and Cox Communications, Alphabet’s purchase of cybersecurity firm Wiz and Constellation Energy’s acquisition of US power station operator Calpine. All were valued at around US$30 billion or more, including debt.
Transactions like these and Meta Platforms’ US$14 billion-plus investment in data-labeling start-up Scale AI have lifted the value of all deals globally by almost a fifth to US$1.8 trillion, the data show.
“The creativity we’re seeing across deals is symptomatic of the need to unwind the massive amounts of capital tied up in privately held companies,” said Haidee Lee, global head of sponsor M&A at Goldman Sachs.
A strong second quarter means advisers can head into their summer breaks with more confidence about the rest of 2025. That is despite the ongoing geopolitical and trade turmoil that has at times this year set alarm bells ringing across Wall Street’s M&A desks and which could still damage sentiment going forward.