The total deal value of cross border merger and acquisitions (M&A) within the Asia Pacific region reached a record high of $101.2 billion so far this year, a report says.
According to global deal tracking firm Dealogic, the Asia Pacific Intra-Region Crossborder M&A total deal value has reached a record high of $101.2 billion in 2012 year to date, up 17% from the previous year-to-date record of $86.4 billion clocked in 2011.
This year's Asia Pacific Intra-Region Crossborder M&A total deal value has also surpassed the historical full year levels.
The M&A deal value was boosted by 17 deals worth over a billion dollar each announced in 2012 so far totalling to as much as $55 billion. These mega deals accounted for more than half (54%) of the total deal value.
In the corresponding period last year, 14 billion-dollar deals were announced totalling to $24.3 billion in 2011.
Despite the record value, the number of deals in 2012 stood at 1,500 (down 13%) over the comparable period a year ago.
At 1,500 deals so far, this marks the lowest year-to-date level since 2009, when 1,425 deals were announced, Dealogic said.
Thailand led the crossborder acquiring nations ranking in the Asia Pacific region for the first time with $23.2 billion worth of deals through 35 transactions in 2012, almost fivefold of the $4.8 billion via 32 deals recorded in the same period last year, Dealogic said.
In 2012, Americas Intra-Region Crossborder M&A value was up 22% year-on-year to $83.6 billion, while EMEA intra-region crossborder M&A volume totalled $155.1 billion, down 9% from the same 2011 period.
In terms of M&A advisor ranking, Morgan Stanley lead the Asia Pacific Intra-Region Crossborder M&A advisor ranking table with a 22.6% market share, followed by HSBC with a market share of 21%, Dealogic said.