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M&A momentum across the industry is projected for a slowdown in activity as we progress through the second quarter of the year. While the payments space maintained steady M&A traction throughout the first quarter, the overall global market noticed a significant drop in acquisitions as well as venture capital raised. This was partially due to a few factors, including ongoing global supply chain issues, conflicts between Russia and Ukraine, inflation rates and others. While these factors continue to influence company’s go-forward strategies, the general landscape has begun to shift more towards a buyer’s market. Purchase price multiples are receding from last year and potential buyers are increasing their attention towards external market impacts during due diligence processes. Until the market begins to stabilize, we can expect M&A activities to decline in the near future.
Moreover, attention towards IPOs and SPAC deals are dwindling in the payments space. As seen in TSG’s Payments Index, market performances across several public payment firms have declined over the past few quarters. This is a result of a number of factors and has influenced the private market and its long-term strategies when evaluating raising capital.