With interest rates taming and the economy doing well, merger and acquisitions (M&A) professionals are confident pent-up acquisition demand will surge this year.
Among 238 M&A professionals surveyed by Grant Thornton, 81% said they expect deal volume to increase over the next six months compared with the previous six months.
Three-fourths of respondents said they executed fewer deals over the past 12 months specifically because of rate increases.
Two-thirds of those surveyed said they believe rates will decrease over the next 12 months, and 81% of those who expect rates to decrease say lower rates will lead to them doing more deals.
On the downside, despite the better outlook for interest rates, traditional bank funding for deals may be difficult to obtain, according to Grant Thornton. Learn why.