Maximizing Value Creation: Sign To Close

The time between the signing and closing of an M&A deal is lengthening—by quite some distance. Investors and management teams have long focused on the pre-signing due diligence phase, and the post-close first-100 days; but the growing interval between them can endanger the realization of deal value.

More stringent merger control has been one cause of the increase, with increased regulatory scrutiny driving extended sign-to-close periods and a range of deals subject to regulatory investigation and approval also increasing. On average, the durations of significant U.S. antitrust merger investigations and European Union phase II cases have risen by 90% and 47%, respectively.