Corporate buyers are driving the UK’s mergers and acquisitions market to a potential record high — but private equity sponsors are being left out of the biggest deals. M&A value in the UK reached £178.9 billion in the year to July 7, putting it on course for an annualised total of roughly £347 billion, according to PitchBook data. That would eclipse the previous peak of £309.2 billion set in 2015.
The top 10 deals alone accounted for about 52% of all M&A value, yet PE sponsors captured just 15.1% of that sum. The pattern is stark: in February, Engie bought UK Power Networks for an equity value of £10.5 billion, while Nuveen acquired Schroders for £9.9 billion. Both were sealed with financing structures that corporate buyers could deploy but private equity firms could not easily replicate, sidelining sponsors from the year’s largest transactions.
“UK M&A value is on track to hit a record £347bn, but PE sponsors captured only 15% of top deals.”
With dealmaking accelerating and record levels within reach, the question is whether PE can regain a foothold — or whether cash-rich corporates will continue to dominate the market.