Asset-management mergers and acquisitions increased by 22% worldwide last year, despite the credit crisis in the U.S., according to
The number of deals involving investment-management firms with more than $10 billion in assets rose from 23 in 2006 to 28 in 2007. There were only 13 such deals in 2005.
Total deal volume measured by assets under management was at $1.4 trillion last year, down 36% from 2006.
In 2008 we expect to see activity driven initially by the market stresses, including divestitures and continued minority investments followed by more strategic acquisitions and cross-border deals later in the year, Eric Weber, managing director and chief operating officer at Freeman, told the Wall Street Journal Europe.
