finroam’s Post

𝗛𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗝𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻: 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝟳-𝗘𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻’𝘀 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗠&𝗔 The M&A landscape in Japan is shifting, as seen in 7-Eleven's rejection of an unsolicited purchase proposal. Notably, the rejection was due to the price offered, signaling that Japanese firms are becoming more open to such deals if the terms are right. With increasing shareholder activism and pressure from global investors, Japan’s traditionally conservative corporate culture is adapting. This trend could transform M&A opportunities for investment banks, who must now navigate more complex and competitive transactions. For investment bankers, this evolution represents new possibilities. M&A activity involving Japan’s iconic brands may intensify, as global investors push for restructurings and divestitures. Hostile takeovers could become more frequent, creating demand for advisory services that help businesses defend against unsolicited bids or consider restructuring options. Future Study Explore articles on this topic: Financial Times – Insights into Japan’s M&A trends. Bloomberg – Cross-border M&A and foreign investment in Japan. #MergersAndAcquisitions #InvestmentBanking #HostileTakeovers #JapanEconomy #ShareholderActivism #7Eleven #GlobalInvestment #CorporateGovernance #Finance #FinancialAdvisory

Many global multinationals are divesting their Chinese assets because of geopolitical tensions. BDA Partners has developed expertise in finding buyers, often local Chinese financial sponsors or corporates, to acquire these assets. If you are considering divesting anything in China, please speak with us to learn what options may be possible. Visit our website for deals featuring Chinese divestitures we have managed. #bdapartners #theglobalinvestmentbankingadvisorforAsia

Global M&A activity declined in both volume and value in 2023, according to Pitchbook data, but the number of transactions involving Japanese targets held steady, with 186 deals worth $12.1 billion compared with 188 for a cumulative $21.1 billion in 2022. Bain & Co.'s recent report, "M&A in Japan: Resilient Activity -- But Now It's Time for More," also highlights a record level of acquisitions by private equity investors in 2023. https://lnkd.in/gsnXYfge

Takeshi Kitano, the comedian and movie director once said “A red traffic light is not scary if we cross together.” It is a humorous observation of the Japanese society. Divesting from non-strategic business is not illegal but was not encouraged. Japan Inc. has a herd mentality and I expect this to continue, as Nikkei Asia says. For investors, there are two ways to play the theme: invest in listed equities and gain the rewards, and invest in the divested assets. Real estate in prime locations could be coming to the market more than before. “Japanese listed companies earned almost 8 trillion yen ($56 billion) from selling shares in subsidiaries and affiliates over the past three years, the highest tally since the 2008 global financial crisis, as they sought to put shareholder money to better use... The figures exclude cross-shareholdings and short-term securities.” https://lnkd.in/grW9YA8A

As equities markets in China continue to flounder... Delistings in HK have outnumbered IPOs by value so far this year. "As of the end of June, 14 Hong Kong-listed companies have announced moves to delist in the first half of the year. One has completed the process, in a deal worth $8.5 billion, according to Dealogic data. That is more than the $1.7 billion raised by 30 companies that went public during the same period. That last time such a trend was seen was in the first half of 2020, during the pandemic. Depressed share prices and China's economic downturn have taken a toll on many listed companies in Hong Kong, which is triggering a wave of delistings. These include Chinese firms, Hong Kong firms and French top international cosmetics brand L'Occitane. Deal advisers say they are receiving more inquiries from bankers and investors on taking companies private." #hkex #china #equities #shareprice #value #delistings https://lnkd.in/grtak6A6

It’s a tall order for the Singapore market to attract regional IPOs, in my view. It will be all the more difficult if the local market does not have a broad swathe of mid-sized companies trading at healthy valuations. Companies here need to give investors a reason to get excited about their prospects. Here’s the latest #MarkToMarket column, which ran in today’s edition of #TheBusinessTimes: https://lnkd.in/gffriktY

Many thanks to Manuel Baigorri of Bloomberg for featuring me in a recent article discussing the increasing trend in Hong Kong take private transactions. For more details see link to the article below. Alvarez & Marsal Paul Aversano; Stella Yuan; Sandra Sokoloff; Paul Licursi

Japan’s sleepy companies still need more reform ??? As one might expect once again a rather one-sided article by the Economist on Japanese corporate governance. The article – without explicitly saying so – suggests that the Anglo-Saxon approach of focussing on key indicators such as return on equity, price-to-book ratio is the way to evaluating the success of a company. The article conveniently forgets to mention that Japan Inc. has achieved tremendous success over the past decades, and this was done taking a completely different approach. Focus was on long-term viability, lifelong employment and ensuring success across the value chain. It is therefore not a surprise that Toyota is one of the most admired automotive brands in the world, Mitsubishi Corporation and Mitsui & Co., are the largest trading houses and MUFG one of the most successful Financial Institutions globally – just to name a few. I am not saying that the Japanese model is the superior model, it is a model that works for Japan and investors who value stability over s/t (and short lived) profits. There is not one model that works for everyone and every country; responsible journalism should stop trying to paint all in either black or white – there are many shades that work well in specific environments. I am also not saying that nothing needs to be fixed in Japan – there are certainly areas where reform can be helpful and lead to even better, jet sustainable results, I am only saying that one should not force a questionable Anglo-Saxon approach on countries/regions in the East; be it Japan, China or ASEAN. What is your view – do you agree that a more open mind is required compared to what the author is offering here? #japan, #economist, #corporategovernance, #mergersandacquisition, #shareholdervalue https://lnkd.in/gfnwqQv9

Chinese companies are setting up shop anywhere but China — and the US Chinese firms are expanding overseas due to slowing domestic growth and market saturation. The growth was fuelled by mergers and acquisitions in Belt and Road partner countries that surged 32%. Chinese companies now favor greenfield deals over mergers and acquisitions. China's outward-bound investment increased nearly 1% from 2022 to 2023, hitting nearly $150 billion in 2023, according to a report professional services giant EY published in February. #mergersandacquisitions #finance #china #investmentbanking

The Mission Letter of Von der Leyen to new Competition Commissioner Teresa Ribera sends a strong message to DG COMP to rethink the fundamentals of the approach taken over the last 20 years, and reframe a new competition policy aimed at supporting companies scaling up in global markets and ensuring they have incentives to invest, innovate and grow - also in line with Draghi´s messages. Amongst other objectives, one of the key taks for DG COMP is the review of the Guidelines on Horizontal Mergers to drive this change. We welcome this shift of approach of the Commission and its willingness to reform the rules that govern EU merger decisions, but we also wonder if the review of the Guidelines would be enough to make this thorough change the Commission aims to pursue. Instead, we genuinely believe that the reform of the EUMR should come first, as it would ensure such a fundamental change of approach in which competition policy should become a tool to secure Europe´s competitiveness, resiliency, strategic autonomy, as other parameters of consumer welfare in the complex current geopolitical environment. READ my post where we share Telefónica´s views on the new challenges for DG COMP ahead of the next mandate - very happy to discuss with the LinkedIn network ;)