In a Bloomberg TV interview Wednesday, Dorothee Blessing, JPMorgan Chase's global investment banking co-head, said "We do think we might be set for a record year" for M&A and capital raising. Her read: activity could accelerate into the final stretch of 2026 even with the macro worries piling up.
Per Bloomberg's tally, first-half global deal volume rose about 30% from a year earlier to $2.6 trillion, pacing against the 2021 peak of $5.3 trillion. Blessing added, "We see strategic dealmaking to continue to be on the rise," noting that "The boardroom discussion is centered around growth."
Buyout firms started 2026 cautiously, holding off on exits when portfolio marks sat above what public markets would bear. Blessing said some funds are stepping back into M&A and IPOs when they have conviction they can get a deal over the line. Not everyone is convinced the pace can hold, with skeptics pointing to the Iran conflict, higher energy prices, inflation and trade policy as threats to momentum.
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Executives aren't blind to the backdrop. As Blessing put it, "In the boardroom conversations we are having, people are not ignorant of the complexity of the world they operate in, and the businesses they operate in," and "It is all about navigating the strategic agenda and looking through those uncertainties." If the late-year pipeline materializes, more takeovers and listings can mean fresh opportunities for investors to evaluate, but also more noise. Keep an eye on whether announced deals actually close and at what terms, since that is the real tell on risk appetite and pricing power.