JPM | M&A 2026 Mid-Year Outlook: EMEA Special Situations Specialist Commentary Merger Arbitrage · Pre-Announced · Spin-off · Event Driven

Research evidence excerpt

JPM | M&A 2026 Mid-Year Outlook: EMEA Special Situations Specialist Commentary Merger Arbitrage · Pre-Announced · Spin-off · Event Driven

t, (3)

friendshoring and securing strategic capabilities cross-border M&A, (4) sponsors drawing on multiple pools of capital and

structured solutions, (5) record high activism in the US and APAC and (6) AI investments.

Delving further into few of the M&A drivers

• Desire for scale: Anu noted that the scale premium priced by the market is at an all-time high in the UK and Europe. There

are good quality smaller companies which are mispriced due to a lack of scale or just not relevant to investment themes. She

highlighted that scale can not only move a company into a new category of valuation multiples and peers, but also allow

companies to build resiliency in their supply chains. Deal synergies can also increase companies’ ability to invest in AI and

their supply chain.

• UK M&A: YTD M&A activity in the UK is the same level as 2024 and 2025 (see chart below). Anu emphasized that the UK

is a seasoned M&A market with plenty of precedents, which gives boards comfort on the ease of completing a deal. Reuters

noted how US acquirors accounted for over half of UK M&A and showed how the P/E gap between FTSE100/S&P 500 has

widened since the start of the Iran War. The FT discussed how we are seeing more takeover discussions carried out in public

in the UK. In the article, they showed the declining % of UK shares owned by UK investors, who would most likely be

aligned with boards (~60% in 2010 vs ~40% in 2026).

• Regulatory environment: Our M&A outlook report noted that FDI regimes are evolving globally. Boards are building deal

theses around national priorities from the start of a deal.