In an increasingly AI-dominated M&A market, performance is what counts. Including in communications.
The global M&A market met high growth expectations in the first half of 2026. According to LSEG, total market volume climbed 48% to $2.8 trillion.
Exceptionally high valuations in the tech sector, particularly in the AI ecosystem, led to a boom in mega-deals in the first half of 2026, the likes of which had not been seen in four years. And the second half of the year is also poised to be highly dynamic. More than $2 trillion in uninvested capital is waiting for the best investment opportunity, transformative divestitures are waiting for the best owner, and portfolio companies are waiting for the best exit.
So, euphoria all around? Not quite. There is too much scepticism about the sustainability of the AI boom, which is affecting not only the AI terracorns themselves but also the global value chain. The insatiable demand for energy, semiconductors, data centers, cloud capacity, and so on is driving up demand, and with it, valuations. No one can turn their back on this boom, yet investors are increasingly faced with a nearly impossible task: distinguishing companies with sustainable exponential growth potential from the bandwagoners’ who are merely reaping temporary benefits.
The anticipated IPOs in the AI segment, OpenAI and Anthropic, will reveal whether valuations will hold up or if concerns about market overheating are justified.
While all spotlight is focused on tech-driven mega-deals in North America, other sectors and regions of the world are almost completely overshadowed. Yet there is plenty of momentum in Europe as well, and sentiment is often stronger than in the tech sector. In the energy sector, the focus is shifting away from the sustainability debate and toward meeting growing energy demand. The defence industry, including dual-use sectors, is benefiting from rising defence spending. Banks, driven in part by AI opportunities, are on a path of consolidation and upscaling, while ongoing transformation pressures in traditional industrial sectors, including the automotive industry, are driving carve-outs, to name just one example.
Geopolitical factors are increasing pressure on all market participants. The unpredictability of tariffs and other trade restrictions, the recent disruption of supply chains, and rising raw material prices resulting from the Iran conflict are heightening uncertainty and, consequently, market volatility. Added to this are the traditional risk factors facing the global economy, ranging from inflationary pressures and central bank policy to the fragmentation of value chains. And not least, there is a high degree of uncertainty regarding the future direction of economic, industrial, and sustainability policies. In short, it has rarely been so uncertain whether decisions being driven today, including in the M&A sector, will still be the right ones tomorrow.
This makes it all the more clear that deals, regardless of which side is involved, whether seller, buyer, or target, require not only valuation calculations and portfolio analysis, but also well-thought-out communication and the smart management of change. The higher the valuations, the more demanding the expectations for the post-deal performance of the acquired units and the newly formed teams. The key here is to systematically mitigate risks and offer the workforce a compelling long-term outlook, even more so in times of talent shortages.
The insights from H/Advisors’ M&A expert teams over the past six months speak volumes:
- Deals must be explained particularly well. A vague reference to a good strategic fit is not enough. Stakeholders’ need for information focuses, among other things, on organisational changes, the resilience of the business model amid high market volatility, and the integration roadmap, including potentially painful synergies. Overly euphoric visions without a factual foundation lack credibility and lead to demotivation.
- Communication and change management measures designed to maintain team engagement are increasingly being integrated into the M&A program from the outset, rather than tacked on at the end.
- As the complexity of ownership structures increases, for example, in bid consortia involving strategic investors and private equity firms, there is a greater need to clarify future governance, value creation, and exit strategies.
- Focusing solely on the unit being sold and its workforce is not enough. Pressure for change also exists, for example, in the case of carve-outs within the RemainCo—due, for instance, to reduced demand for central functions—or among the workforce of an acquiring strategic investor, which must cope with the pressure to integrate.
- In times of high market uncertainty and corresponding concerns on the part of employees, deals rarely follow the ideal path. Stakeholders must therefore remain flexible, plan for various scenarios, be prepared for conflicts, and stay attuned to the pulse of the organisations.
Our global team helps companies navigate complex transactions and stakeholder communications and can draw on extensive experience from recently completed deals. In the first half of 2026, H/Advisors maintained its position among the leading European M&A advisors in the communications sector, ranking second by volume in France and second by deal count in the UK in Mergermarket’s Global and Regional M&A Rankings for 1H26 (PR Advisors). Among other things, H/Advisors advised on one of the few mega-deals outside North America: the acquisition of TK Elevator by KONE and a consortium led by Advent and Cinven, with an enterprise value for TKE of EUR 29.4 billion. Beyond Europe, our APAC M&A team also delivered a strong performance, ranking second by deal volume.
