For French companies, a resumption of mergers and acquisitions is expected from the start of the school year

Safran's acquisition of actuation and flight control businesses, the sale of the Carrefour store network in Italy... In July, and even early August, companies were busy wrapping up pending transactions, before the big summer migration. After the first-half accounts have been closed, the period is ideal for the exercise. But this year, investment bankers say they haven't abandoned their calculators and spreadsheets.

"Many projects are in the pipeline for the start of the school year. We anticipate strong activity starting in September," says Philippe-Elie Bacot, Co-Head of Advisory France at BNP Paribas. "Many disposals or mergers that were under consideration were slowed down during the first months of the year, or even temporarily put on hold, due to the uncertainty surrounding customs duties. We expect these projects to be relaunched starting in September," says Marie-Charlotte Etienne, Co-Head of Advisory France at BNP Paribas.

An example of these operations that were frozen for a time and then unfrozen, Capgemini announced on July 7 that it had reached an agreement to acquire WNS, an American specialist in artificial intelligence, for $3.3 billion (€2.81 billion). Discussions had been suspended in May, amid high volatility in the financial markets. "The stock markets started the year with high trading volumes and high volatility. This is excellent for our sales and trading activities, but if the turmoil continues, it weighs on mergers and acquisitions operations that require stability," explains Emmanuel Goldstein, head of Morgan Stanley in France.

This explains why activity remained rather sluggish in the first half of the year. In the first six months of the year, transactions involving French companies reached $69.5 billion, according to the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), 4% less than in the same period in 2024. At the same time, the European market declined by 2.3%, proving that concerns about the approximately €40 billion in budget savings to be made in France are undoubtedly weighing on the business climate, but only marginally. This sluggishness in Europe contrasts with the dynamism visible in the United States and Asia: globally, mergers and acquisitions increased by 23% in the first half, reaching $1,826 billion, according to LSEG.

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