Mergers And Acquisitions On The Rise

 The Initial Public Offerings of many companies are seeing a set back in the current economic situation. IPOs of tech companies are taking a back seat with tech stocks not doing well in India and globally too. A total of 169 acquisitions have taken place with an average acquisition price at 90 million dollars in 2022 so far. During the same period in CY21 (calendar year), the numbers were 115 acquisitions with an average acquisition price at 180 million dollars. 

Companies that are growing and have the capital are looking for adjacent areas where they can find value. Small start-ups that could be of value addition to the larger companies are the opportunities that the companies are looking for. For many companies these are the avenues for growth and expansion. 

For the FY21, the following companies have been the major acquirers. 

* Byju's, which acquired Toppr, Whodat, Scholr, Hashlearn among others

* Unacademy, which acquired Swiflearn, TapChief, Handa Ka Funda

* Good Glamm, which acquired Miss Malini, Scoop Whoop

For the FY22, the following have been the major acquirers.

* Pine Labs, which acquired Setu and Mosambee

* Flipkart, which acquired Yaantra and Gadgetwood

* PhonePe, which acquired WealthDesk, GigIndia and OpenQ

One of the deals which created a buzz was the Zomato-Blinkit deal. This would give Zomato a presence in the quick commerce space. OYO acquiring Direct Booker was another such deal. This deal enabled OYO to increase and strengthen its presence in Europe and Croatia. 

Companies that have the ability to invest and see value in smaller businesses are on to acquiring or merging with the smaller firms. This is essentially a boost to our economy as both the businesses are benefitting from such deals.