M&A advisory Made in Germany as a Competitive Advantage: Relevance and Perspectives

Abstract

German companies increasingly rely on the advice of foreign advisers in their M&A activities. This article confirms this anecdotical evidence with an empirical analysis of 28,457 observations from 2003 to 2018. While a significant part of the loss of relevance in German M&A advisory is structurally rooted, a permanent loss of domestic M&A expertise can soon turn into a locational disadvantage for Germany as a globally-oriented open economy. While any political intervention seems to be ineffective and counterproductive, the remaining local M&A advisers should seize upon the digital transition of professional services and the regulatory opportunities of the European Capital Markets Union.