Prudentia M&A Folio shows that M&A activity in the Baltic states in the first 4 months of 2015 has decreased by 14% in comparison to the same period of 2014. This slowdown was not a surprise taking into account the geopolitical climate.
43 deals were announced in the first 4 months of 2015. In the first 3 months of 2015 there was a 25% drop in count of announced transactions in comparison to the same period of 2014, however, in April the number of deals started to pick up again. Dilatory effect of deteriorated geopolitical climate can be perceived as one of the reasons for reduction of the Baltic M&A activity.
The largest transaction in the period under review was performed by a new investment vehicle established by Partners Group and Baltic Property Trust Asset Management that bought portfolio comprising the majority of the assets of BPT Optima for 163 million EUR. The acquired portfolio includes seven well-known office and retail properties in Tallinn, Riga, Vilnius, Kaunas and Klaipeda. The transaction marks the largest real estate investment into the Baltics in the post-crisis period.
By PZU entrance in the Baltic insurance market last year, issues of this industry’s challenges and potential development have become more topical. Low interest rates and regulations put negative pressure on companies’ budgets and hinder companies' ability to invest in the further digitization. However, most of the insurers in Latvia are subsidiaries of international companies with substantial budgets and available resources for the constant innovation race.
It is expected that utilization of insurance brokerage services will become more and more popular with a goal to reduce insurance companies’ costs and to adopt the Western European operational model, where many insurance companies in specific countries are operating only as risk underwriters.
It is possible to take a look at the full version of Prudentia M&A Folio review here: Prudentia M&A Folio (278.69 KB)