Search results for the "Due Diligence" category
May 9, 2012 - by Phil Adrien
There has been a lot of buzz around the new entrant into the cloud-based document sharing space with the recent announcement of Google Drive. But not all cloud-based document sharing is the same. Specialized document sharing solutions address a fundamentally different set of business problems than a generic document sharing solution does. So where do generic document sharing solutions end and specialized document sharing solutions begin?
Read More
May 8, 2012 - by Debbie Stephenson
A new survey by Clifford Chance has found that there is increasing appetite for cross-border deals, as businesses seek growth outside their home markets. The multi-regional report surveyed nearly 400 companies, each with revenues of more than $1 billion. Respondents were asked to rank their top strategic drivers and perceived risks to cross-border M&A.
Read More
May 3, 2012 - by Debbie Stephenson
April proved to be a big month for M&A activity in the Life Sciences industry as companies announced more than $29 billion in agreed upon transactions, the bulk of which occurred during the final week. This stood in stark contrast to the IPO market, which saw no completed Life Sciences offerings in U.S. markets during the month.
Read More
Apr 10, 2012 - by Debbie Stephenson
A new report from KPMG International suggests that a global recovery in M&A activity in the food, beverage, consumer goods and retail sectors slowed in the second half of 2011. Findings suggest that macroeconomic forces, such as euro zone instability and challenges in arranging financing, were the main contributors.
Read More
Mar 28, 2012 - by Phil Adrien
The FDA has provided guidelines for electronic submissions as set out in Title 21 CFR Part 11. The guidelines include a set of definitions and required controls but the FDA is not structured or funded to provide certification of applications or vendors. As such, certification on Title 21 CFR Part 11 currently doesn’t exist. Individual companies must bear the responsibility to evaluate whether systems have controls that meet the guidelines for a closed system.
Read More
Mar 19, 2012 - by Carolyn McCaughey
Companies, since 2001, are getting better at M&A, according to a report by Bain & Company. This is characterized by higher overall returns on acquisition and lower overall underperforming mergers. One thing that remains unchanged though, is the impact that poor communication and swift decision-making can have on talent loss in the post-merger integration phase. When companies wait too long to put new organizational structures and leadership in place or fail to quickly address corporate culture-related issues, talented executives leave for greener pastures.
Read More
Mar 14, 2012 - by Phil Adrien
Seen as a surprising step, representatives of the U.S. Energy Department are hosting a meeting with large U.S. Corporations to promote the benefits of renewable energy investments in a bid to boost funding options for the industry. This move comes on the heels of the completion of a government stimulus program that expired December 31, 2011.
Companies including Exxon Mobil Corp. and Walt Disney Co will have Steven Chu, Energy Secretary, promoting the benefits of renewable energy investments, specifically the tax-equity markets. The meeting, set for March 13th, is an attempt to reinvigorate a slowing tax equity market.
Read More
Mar 12, 2012 - by Phil Adrien
Exits were strong in 2011, and this trend should carry forward in 2012 with exits expected to achieve near highs of the past decade. According to Pitch Book and Grant Thornton’s 2012 PE Exit Activity Report, Private Equity ¬firms sold or took public, 213 U.S. companies during the second half of 2011 alone. This brought the 2011 exit count to 420 totaling $104 billion, only a slight difference from 2010 totals of 434 deals and $106 billion. With Private Equity seeing a reduction in capital raises, they will need to exit businesses quickly to see a profit. With more firms actively looking to close exit opportunities, the competition for acquirers is on the rise.
Read More
Feb 23, 2012 - by Phil Adrien
Global M&A activity in the mining sector grew by about 50 percent last year to surpass $US100 billion, according to KPMG.
Copper producer and Firmex customer, Quadra FNX Mining was part of the largest Canadian deal in the final quarter of the year. They received a cash offer valued at $CDN3.5 billion from Poland’s state-controlled copper miner, KGHM Polska Miedz.
Close to one third of metals companies surveyed by KPMG expect to expand through mergers and acquisitions over the next two years. Canadian companies are expected to continue to be the primary targets. In the final quarter of 2011, Canadian firms made up 21% of the global M&A value in the mining sector. Total activity in Canada is up 30 percent year-over-year to about $US34 billion.
Read More
Dec 9, 2011 - by Joel Lessem
Today we enjoyed our fourth collaborative Master Class with Andrew J. Sherman, author and Partner at Jones Day. He led us through his best practices to ensure success in post-close integration with a Buy-Side perspective of M&A.
Andrew spoke to the challenges in post-close integration. Citing at KPMG survey, Sherman agreed that cultural and people issues present the biggest challenge during the post deal period. He also referenced specific data points related to post-deal integration, citing a Deloitte survey Sherman highlighted that although the desired outcome of integration may be to rapidly capture cost & revenue, synergies were not achieved in 70% of cases.
The news wasn't all bad though, Andrew provided tips, tricks and checklists for retaining key employees, overcoming cultural issues, establishing a transition team and more.
Read More
