Linklaters tops City success story in global M&A market

City giant Linklaters leads the UK success story in the merger and acquisitions (M&A) market by topping the latest world and European tables for deals in the first six months of 2002.

In the European market, where City firms occupy four of the top five places, the UK consolidated its position as the hotbed of M&A activity recording 516 deals worth 40 billion.

Figures released by analysts Thomson Financial show Linklaters acted on 140 completed deals world-wide, worth 56 billion - 120 of them, worth 45 billion, in Europe.

On the global table, US firms Sullivan & Cromwell and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom came second and third, with 58 deals at 52 billion and 62 at 50 billion respectively.

Freshfields came in fourth with 71 deals valued at 45 billion, with Allen & Overy the next UK firm at ninth (80 deals worth 29 billion).

It was in the European M&A market that UK firms really dominated, with only New York firm Shearman & Sterling (third) coming between the top City firms.

Freshfields was second, although some way down on Linklaters, with 58 deals valued at 27 billion.

Allen & Overy (14th last year) and Clifford Chance featured fourth and fifth respectively, with Slaughter and May (ninth) also in the top ten.

In a table looking at completed and ongoing transactions valued at over 15 million, compiled by on-line research group Mergermarket, Linklaters again came top in Europe with 100 deals valued at 72 billion.

UK firms filled the next four places with Ashurst Morris Crisp the surprise package, coming in fourth - with 44 deals worth 35 billion - moving up from 20th place in 2001.

David Cheyne, head of corporate at Linklaters, said: 'The market is down in terms of volume, but we have benefitted from having a wide spread over Europe and Asia.

Thus, if one market falls we are not so badly affected by maintaining work in the other.'

While he said the UK would probably always be the biggest M&A market, he predicted: 'Over the next couple of years I can see the M&A market on the continent developing, particularly in France and Germany.'

Andrew Towler