Number of deals down 42% in October but matches pre-pandemic level: Report

According to GT Bharat's monthly Dealtracker, the biggest deal in October was Torrent Pharma's $250 million acquisition of Curatio Healthcare

The total number of deals by India Inc in October fell 42 per cent year-on-year (YoY) and deal volumes dropped 77 per cent, a new report said.

The 129 deals signed in the month amounted to $2.1 billion. In October last year, 223 deals were signed with a total value of $9.1 billion. This is the lowest monthly volume witnessed in 2022.

Compared to September 2022, the number of deals was down 11 per cent and their total value fell 49 per cent, according to Grant Thornton Bharat's monthly Dealtracker. The slips were due to the absence of any big-ticket transactions. In October, no transaction above $1 billion was recorded.

The number of deals in October was, however, more than pre-pandemic levels. October 2020, there were 111 deals.

"However, the October 2022 numbers match healthy, pre-pandemic levels and are especially notable in a time of uncertainty fueled by geopolitical instability, spiking inflation, skittish capital markets and regulatory changes," Shanthi Vijetha, partner of Growth at GT Bharat said.

The year-to-date (YTD) performance has been at par with 2021. The deal volume was up 3 per cent while the values saw a 51 per cent increase amounting to $116 billion as compared to the first 10 companies in 2021.

Merger and acquisition (M&A) deals fell 47 per cent YoY and its value fell by 79 per cent. The start-up sector recorded the highest number of M&A deals.

"The start-up sector led the volumes with 27% of the deals driven by deals in the enterprise application segment followed by auto tech and edtech segments," the report added.

The biggest such deal was Torrent Pharma’s $250 million acquisition of Curatio Healthcare.

With 96 deals, private equity (PE) marked the lowest monthly volumes in the last 16 months. Investors are trying to stay safe amid highly volatile times.