M&A Going Forward: Speed Is The New Currency

The global pandemic has left local economies shaken. It is increasingly clear that the recovery will not take a "V" shape but will rather look like a "swoosh" logo. This turmoil has left many local and regional companies distressed, unable to pay their debts when due or at very best in breach of financial covenants.

 Although m&a activity has suffered a sharp slowdown in H1 2020 across markets, the general expectation is that there will be a wave of distressed transactions led by sponsor activity, since private equity firms raised record funds before the pandemic and are now sitting on huge amounts of dry powder with pressure from their limited partners to invest. Distressed companies can be attractive targets for acquisitions or investments (debt or equity), since investors that can decipher the complexities around such companies can unlock value to boost returns. The current distressed environment is therefore ripe for the picking for tactical opportunists or