M&A: 3 Things to Watch for in 2025

This April, Fogel & Potamianos LLP will be hosting its annual 2025: M&A and Alternative Investment Forecast. We have learned from experience that while it’s difficult to predict the future, the right people can help forecast it. In our pre-panel meeting with panelists Cesar Bello, Partner with hedge fund Corbin Capital Partners, Jason Somerville, Partner with investment bank GW Hahnbeck, and Robert Dalie, Managing Director of wealth management firm The Summa Group of Oppenheimer & Co. Inc, several insights emerged:

1. The market is aversive to uncertainty. The uncertainty around tariffs, government policy, and interest rates has many buyers in a holding pattern for Q1. In poker terms, buyers are waiting for the “flop” (the first 3 shared cards from the dealer) before they make major buying decisions. In times of uncertainty, investors tend to seek higher-quality assets for better returns.
2. Private equity will be influential. There are two sides to this. First, PE has a tremendous amount of dry powder that needs to go to work. Second, as PE holds onto their PortCos longer, and funds age past their initial terms, extending the fund’s life places a drag on IRR. This incentivizes PE to unload underperforming PortCos to strategics and other buyers, with an upside kicker for PE if these buyers are able to raise performance. Look for PE to have an impact on both the sell and buy side.
3. Corporates are players. Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) and other corporate M&A initiatives are looking for ways to move the needle.  While CVC often has an aspect of returns, corporate players in M&A are looking for ways to expand products and services, drive revenue, and acquire IP.  They are and will be active.

Jerome Fogel is co-founder of Fogel & Potamianos LLP. A partner in the Corporate Practice Group and Chair of the Sports & Entertainment Group, he is known as an innovator and dealmaker in the legal community. He represents private companies in mergers and acquisitions, emerging venture funds from formation through deployment of capital, and sports superstars in their off-field transactions.

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