August 3, 2015 CAPITAL MARKETS TRANSACTION VOLUME REBOUNDS STRONGLY IN FIRST HALF 2015

Berkery Noyes’ Financial Technology report for first half 2015 indicated that total transaction volume decreased seven. Aggregate deal value increased 17 percent, from $16.21 billion to $18.90 billion. When compared to first half 2014, volume rose 14 percent and value gained 63 percent. The peak for volume throughout the last 30 months occurred in second half 2014 while value reached its zenith in first half 2015.

The median revenue multiple increased from 2.8x in second half 2014 to 4.5x in first half 2015. Of note, deals during the last two-and-a-half years with enterprise values above $160 million received a median revenue multiple of 4.5x and median EBITDA multiple of 16.2x, whereas those in the $10-$20 million range had a median revenue multiple of 1.7x and median EBITDA multiple of 9.0x.

The segment with the largest increase in volume during first half 2015 was Capital Markets with a 31 percent rise, from 58 to 76 deals. Four of the top ten deals also occurred in the Capital Markets segment.

Notable related transactions included SS&C Technologies’ acquisition of Advent Software, a provider of portfolio management software, for $2.6 billion; Playtech’s acquisition of Plus500, an online FOREX trading platform that serves retail customers, for $697 million; and BATS Global Markets’ acquisition of KCG Hotspot FX, a FOREX trading venue and electronic communication network, for $365 million.

“An increased appetite for technology spending at financial institutions is presenting vendors with good pipelines and an increased array of legacy tech sellers,” stated Peter Ognibene, Managing Director at Berkery Noyes. “In addition, regulatory pressures are requiring more transparency pertaining to risk assessment and valuation methods.”

The overall industry’s decrease in volume over the past six months was attributable in major part to a 41 percent decline in the Payments segment. This came in the aftermath of a 46 percent increase in second half 2014, which was the segment’s highest point over the past two-and-a-half years.