2019-07-08 Berkery Noyes Releases Financial Technology and Information Industry M&A Report For Half Year 2019
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NEW YORK — July 8, 2019 — Berkery Noyes, an independent mid-market investment bank, today released its half year 2019 mergers and acquisitions trend report for the Financial Technology and Information Industry.
The report analyzes M&A activity during the first half of 2019 and compares it with the four previous six-month periods from 2017 to 2018. This market includes information and technology companies in Capital Markets, Payments, Banking, Insurance, and other related financial services.
Total transaction volume increased eight percent on a half year basis. Aggregate deal value rose significantly, from $16.71 billion to $111.11 billion. Of note, there were no acquisitions above the $20 billion threshold in all of 2018, compared to three such transactions in first half 2019.
The median revenue multiple, after rising from 1.8x in first half 2018 to 4.2x in second half 2018, declined to 3.8x in first half 2019. Over the last two-and-a-half years, the median revenue multiple was 3.0x. Deals in the $10-$20 million range during this timeframe received a median enterprise value multiple of 1.1x revenue, compared to 2.3x revenue for those in the $20-$80 million range and 4.7x revenue for those in the $80 million and above range.
Deal activity in the Capital Markets segment underwent an 19 percent increase in first half 2019, making it the sector with the largest rise in volume. Notable segment transactions year-to-date included BlackRock’s acquisition of eFront, an alternative investment management software and solutions provider, for $1.3 billion; Deutsche Börse’s announced acquisition of Axioma, a risk management and portfolio construction company used by financial institutions, for $850 million; and Morgan Stanley’s acquisition of Solium Capital, which offers stock plan administration technology and services, for $749 million.
Transaction volume in the Payments segment improved 15 percent relative to second half 2018. In terms of value, the overall industry’s top three largest acquisitions thus far in 2019 occurred in the segment. The industry’s largest deal in first half 2019 was FIS’ announced merger with Worldpay Group for $42.9 billion. This was the highest value Financial Technology and Information transaction ever recorded by Berkery Noyes. Other notable Payments deals year-to-date included Global Payments’ announced acquisition of TSYS, which offers credit card processing and other services, for $26.06 billion; Fiserv’s acquisition of First Data Corporation, a payment processing company, for $22 billion; and ACI Worldwide’s acquisition of Speedpay, which is Western Union’s United States bill pay business, for $750 million.
As for other select market sectors covered in the report, the Banking segment remained almost constant at 65 deals. The largest Banking related transaction in first half 2019 was Thoma Bravo’s announced acquisition of Ellie Mae, a software provider for the residential mortgage sector, for $3.31 billion.
A copy of the FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY AND INFORMATION INDUSTRY M&A REPORT FOR HALF YEAR 2019 is available at the Berkery Noyes website.