GCC M&A Report – Q4 2020

Executive Summary

Transactions increased by 200% compared to Q4 2019

Throughout Q4 2020, the GCC market closed a total of 36 M&A transactions, a substantial increase relative to both Q3 2020 and Q4 2019. Overall, UAE and Kuwaiti targets attracted the most interest from buyers, which is evident as they accounted for 42% and 31% of the total number of transactions that closed. Following them are Saudi and Bahraini targets, who accounted for the remaining transactions that closed, at 22% and 5%, respectively. It is worth noting that the Bahraini and Kuwaiti market witnessed the greatest level of growth quarter-over-quarter whereas the Omani and Qatari market recorded zero closed transactions throughout the quarter.

Moreover, GCC targets received a slightly greater level of interest from foreign buyers when compared to the previous quarter however it remains far behind the level of foreign activity that the market has become accustomed to. Overall, foreign acquirers closed four transactions throughout the quarter, which is 33% greater relative to Q3 2020 and 75% lower relative to Q4 2019.

In addition, these transactions spanned across multiple sectors, a trend that has persisted throughout the few quarters. With that being said, the sectors that witnessed the greatest level of activity throughout the quarter were the Consumer Discretionary, Education, Financials and Industrials sectors. Collectively, these sectors accounted for more than 56% of the total number of closed transactions. It is worth noting that the Financials and Industrials sectors were also among the sectors that witnessed the greatest level of activity for the past two quarters.

On another note, GCC acquirers actively invested in companies within their local markets as well as in international markets and shied away from acquiring regional companies with the exception of UAE. Throughout Q4 2020, GCC acquirers closed a total of 27 transactions within their local markets, compared to 14 transactions in Q3 2020, and ten transactions cross-border, which is slightly less than the number of cross-border transactions that closed in Q3 2020.* It is worth noting that UAE and Bahraini buyers accounted for 50% and 20% of the cross-border activity (closed), followed by Omani, Qatari and Saudi buyers, who accounted for the remainder of the transactions. Lastly, Kuwaiti buyers didn’t close any transaction cross border.

Click "Download for free", to access the full report. For any queries, kindly contact research@markaz.com