We highlight the key European M&A trends in the second half of 2020, and provide our insights into the outlook for M&A moving forward.

Financial institutions M&A sector trends: specialty finance/marketplace lending — H2 2020 and outlook for 2021

Financial institutions M&A sector trends: consumer finance — H2 2020 and outlook for 2021

Financial institutions M&A sector trends: brokers/corporate finance — H2 2020 and outlook for 2021

Financial institutions M&A sector trends: stock exchanges/clearing houses/trading venues — H2 2020 and outlook for 2021

Financial institutions M&A sector trends: payments — H2 2020 and outlook for 2021

Financial institutions M&A sector trends: asset/wealth management — H2 2020 and outlook for 2021

Financial institutions M&A sector trends: fintech — H2 2020 and outlook for 2021

Financial institutions M&A sector trends: banks — H2 2020 and outlook for 2021

The past year has been tumultuous for M&A activity, but with a COVID-19 vaccine rollout underway and pent-up demand among PE firms, the fundamentals are in place for a busy year in 2021

2020 saw several decisions from the Delaware courts that will affect M&A dealmaking. We focus on four that may prove especially consequential.

Real estate portfolios exposed to hospitality and retail assets have struggled through COVID-19 lockdown periods, but healthcare and logistics investments have performed strongly

Total M&A value in the consumer sector has dropped only 1 percent year-on-year thanks to several significant transactions in the food industry

M&A value in the healthcare sector (incorporating pharma, medical and biotech) stayed relatively robust in 2020, even without the kind of blockbuster deals the sector had become accustomed to seeing in recent years

Businesses and consumers have relied on technology more than ever through the course of the pandemic, supporting strong dealmaking at the top end of the market

Deal activity in the oil & gas sector was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, as commodities prices plummeted

The TMT sector was buoyed by global spikes in demand as the world shifted toward virtual interactions in every walk of life

US buyout activity at the top end of the market dropped significantly but exit value held up in 2020

US M&A activity fell precipitously in the first half of the year but picked up again in H2, especially at the upper end of the market

US deal activity held up remarkably well in the face of unprecedented uncertainty in 2020, with total deal value in H2 surpassing the previous year

CCS projects are regulated by the Commonwealth, states and territories under CCS legislation and more general environmental laws and requirements

Despite short-term headwinds, long-term trends are likely to drive increased investment in carbon capture and storage

Although there are no CCS-specific federal environmental laws or regulations, the federal government has significant influence on how CCS is implemented in the US

Our overview of the Section 45Q tax credit helps investors understand how they may receive incentives to capture, store and use carbon dioxide and carbon oxide

Moving beyond inclusion to belonging 

The European leveraged finance market remains resilient after a year of unprecedented hardship, as lenders dissect credits to determine the best possible deals, from pricing to documentary terms

After years of warnings about maturity walls, impending cliff edges, downturns and interest rate hikes that failed to emerge, COVID-19 was the event that brought everything to a temporary standstill—but there's every chance that the markets will explode with activity in the months ahead