The global M&A market reached a record $3,850bn over the first nine months of the year - boosted by a leap in emerging market deal activity - but dropped sharply in the third quarter as buy-out activity collapsed. The Q3 volume of announced deals worldwide fell 42% to $1,000bn from $1,740bn a year ago, according to Dealogic. Goldman Sachs led the nine-month global and US advisory rankings, while JPMorgan topped the European league tables and UBS came first in the Asia Pacific region, excluding Japan. The slowdown is expected to hit year-end bonuses at investment banks by as much as 10-15%, say compensation experts. But investment bankers are confident that M&A activity will pick up next year.
