In 2021, the Baltic M&A and private equity market demonstrated record activity, with the number of announced deals growing by 51% compared to 2020 and also surpassing deal activity levels in all previous years, including those preceding the start of the pandemic. As a result, we can find leading Baltic law firms among the top 6 positions on the Central and Eastern European advisor leaderboards, side-by-side with global legal market heavyweights. This shows that the Baltic investment climate has been favourable to investors.

Number of announced M&A deals in the Baltics in 2018-2021
Source info: Mergermarket. We note that Mergermarket statistics include only higher-value transactions (normally those exceeding USD 5 million) and therefore the overall number of transactions in the Baltics may have been higher than is shown in the statistics.

 

TOP 10 law firms by number of advised deals in the CEE region in 2021
Source info: Mergermarket

 

Deal values increasing but not reaching the record year 2018

The market has clearly recovered from the slump at the beginning of the pandemic. However, while the deal values in 2021 were significantly higher than in 2020, they remained below the record level of 2018 (EUR 2,296 million in 2021 compared to EUR 2,778 million in 2018), which was a special year of remarkable M&A deals in the Baltics. There has been a clear jump (almost a doubling) from the 2019 and 2020 deal value level (from EUR 1,184 million in 2020 to EUR 2,296 million in 2021)

Sums of disclosed values of the announced M&A transactions in the Baltics (Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia) in 2018–2021
Source info: Mergermarket

 

Lithuanian deal market leads by deal count while Estonia shows highest deal value

Having led the Baltic M&A deal market by deal activity in previous years, Estonia now slips to second position, handing over the leadership to Lithuania (48 deals announced in Lithuania in 2021, compared to 43 in Estonia and 24 in Latvia). Nevertheless, in 2021 the number of M&A deals in Estonia set a record compared to previous years (43 in 2021; 32 in 2020; 26 in 2019; and 33 in 2018, which was a very strong year). In Latvia, the deal count also improved significantly compared to 2020, growing from 15 in 2020 to 24 in 2021). The value of deals in Estonia was significantly higher compared to Latvia and Lithuania (EUR 1,706 million compared to EUR 235 million in Latvia and EUR 356 million in Lithuania in 2021).

Number of transactions by country in 2018–2021
Source info: Mergermarket

 

Sums of disclosed values of announced transactions in Estonia 2018–2021
Source info: Mergermarket. We note that Mergermarket statistics include only values that were disclosed by deal parties to Mergermarket or publicly, thus the numbers in the table do not fully reflect the actual size of the M&A market in Estonia and indicate only general tendencies. For example, the graph does not include acquisition of the majority stake in Graanul Invest by Apollo funds as the value of the deal was not announced publicly. Note that transactions are allocated between countries in the Mergermarket database based on “deal dominant geography” criteria as of 13 January 2022.

 

Sums of disclosed values of announced transactions in Latvia 2018–2021
Source info: Mergermarket. We note that Mergermarket statistics include only values that were disclosed by deal parties to Mergermarket or publicly, thus the numbers in the table do not fully reflect the actual size of the M&A market in Latvia and indicate only general tendencies. Transactions are allocated between countries in the Mergermarket database based on “deal dominant geography” criteria as of 13 January 2022.

 

Sums of disclosed values of announced transactions in Lithuania 2018–2021
Source info: Mergermarket. We note that Mergermarket statistics include only values that were disclosed by deal parties to Mergermarket or publicly, thus the numbers in the table do not fully reflect the actual size of the M&A market in Lithuania and indicate only general tendencies. Transactions are allocated between countries in the Mergermarket database based on “deal dominant geography” criteria as of 13 January 2022.

 

TMT, energy and startups leading the way

The TMT sector continues to drive the M&A market with its active search for investors. Also high in deal activity in 2021 were the real estate and construction, services, and energy and utilities sectors.

Baltic M&A deals in 2021 by business sectors
Source info: Mergermarket

 

When looking at the top 10 Baltic deals by disclosed value, we can see that PE/VC funds acted as investors in as many as seven of them. For two years in a row (2020 and 2021) half of the top 10 Baltic deals by disclosed value have been startup deals.

TOP 10 M&A deals in the Baltics in 2021

Top 10 M&A transactions by disclosed sale price in the Baltics (Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia) in 2021
This list has been prepared on the basis of the information in the Mergermarket transaction database and publicly available data. Transactions are allocated between countries in the Mergermarket database based on “deal dominant geography” criteria as of 13 January 2022. The list does not include acquisition of the majority stake in Graanul Invest by Apollo funds as the value of the deal was not announced publicly. * Private equity and venture capital funds (in a few cases may also include some investments from private investors). Notably, PE/VC funds acted as investors in as many as seven of the top 10 Baltic deals by disclosed value. ** Startup companies. For two years in a row (2020 and 2021) as many as five of the top 10 Baltic deals by disclosed value have been startup deals.

 

Estonia – led by the energy, startup and healthcare sectors, the deal market is booming

 

2021 – a very vibrant and busy year for Latvian M&A

 

2021 – a blowout year for M&A in Lithuania

 

Belarus – driven by the tech sector, the M&A and PE market saw growth despite gloomy expectations

 

Join us at the Baltic M&A and Private Equity Forum, the number one networking event for the Baltic M&A industry and market participants interested in the region – on 7 April in Tallinn or online