Overall merger activity has taken quite a hit, but corporate Asia’s global appetite remains strong. Acquisitions of non-Asian assets by Asian companies totaled $61.21 billion in 2008, off slightly from $62.97 billion a year earlier, according to data provider Dealogic. That result was pretty good considering that global M&A volume fell 28 percent in 2008, to $3.3 trillion. The total number of Asian outbound M&A deals rose 18 percent, to 549.
Bank of America Corp. shot to the top of the list of banks taking advantage of the M&A market, thanks to its acquisition of Merrill Lynch & Co. Going forward, the bank will have to make sure that Merrill’s credit losses and integration issues don’t jeopardize its banking franchise in Asia. Citigroup, which was the top player in Asian outbound M&A in 2007 but struggled with some of the biggest credit losses in 2008, dropped off the list of the top M&A advisers.
