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Deal value in media and entertainment plunged 84% in Q1
Apr 3, 2023
Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios
The deal value for global M&A activity in media and entertainment dropped 84% in the first quarter of 2023.
Why it matters: Value in media and entertainment shrunk the most compared to other sectors tracked by Refinitiv.
By the numbers: Activity in the sector dropped to $9 billion compared to $56.3 billion in the prior year's first quarter, per Refinitiv.
- The number of deals decreased by 26% to 649.
- Deal value in the telecommunications sector dropped 68% to $11.9 billion.
Of note: This has been the slowest first quarter for global M&A since 2013, Axios' Dan Primack writes.
What they're saying: At Tulane Law's conference last month, JPMorgan's global head of M&A Anu Aiyengar said, "[T]here's a perception that if you launch a sale process today, proactively, maybe there's something wrong with you."
- "The [rates] uncertainty is what dampens the appetite for dealmaking," Suzanne Kumar, a VP with Bain & Co's global M&A practice, tells Axios' Kate Marino. "It's less about the level and more about the ability to make an assumption about what interest rates will be."
