Study Reveals Global Deal Making Heading for Recovery After Tough Year as Rates are Cut

• Ocorian research finds three out of four senior executives expect increased deal-making and financing over the next 12 months
• Just one in eight say the interest rate environment has had no significant impact on their business in the past year

Deal-making and financing globally are set for recovery in the year ahead after a tough past 12 months as interest rates ease worldwide, new global research* from Ocorian, the specialist global provider of services to financial institutions, asset managers, corporates and high net worth individuals shows.

Around three out of four (75%) of senior executives questioned say they expect increased activity in the year ahead with one in seven (14%) forecasting a significant rise here. Just 4% are forecasting a fall in activity with 21% expecting no changes to the level of deal-making and financing.

The rise in activity highlighted by Ocorian’s study among senior executives at major companies, asset managers working in alternative investments, family offices, wealth managers, capital markets companies and professional services providers follows a tough 12 months.

Its research across the European Union, UK, US, Canada, South Africa, Asia and the Middle East found just one in eight (12%) reported no significant impact on deal-making and financing over the past 12 months.

The research across 19 countries found a third (33%) had delayed or cancelled deals in the past 12 months while 17% said the interest rate environment had reduced the volume of deals their firm agreed. Around two-thirds (67%) said the interest rate environment had increased financing costs.

Nearly three out of four (74%) said they had used hedging strategies in the past 12 months to reduce the interest rate impact on leveraged buyouts while 55% had used fixed-rate debt products and nearly half (47%) had turned to debt maturity management.

Richard Hansford, Head of Business Development - Fund Services at Ocorian said: “The easing of interest rates that we have seen in recent months is welcomed by the industry, whilst debt challenges remain for many asset managers and following the UK Government’s Autumn Statement, inflationary pressures are also lingering around the corner; this will certainly have an impact on future rates reductions and the anticipated timings of those. The noise from the market is clear… we need to see more rate cuts to actively transact. Despite this sentiment, with the rate reductions we have seen so far clients have been picking up their deal flow activity and are bidding on assets that we were not seeing this time last year.

“One thing is certain going into 2025, challenges will remain throughout the year and with the election season of 2024 over; the political pantomime is set to go into overdrive when the US President Elect takes to office on the 20^th January. Clients are certainly building their pipeline for new deals and whilst opportunities remain, many will be watching the impact of geo-political tensions and their impact on deal making.”

Ocorian is a global leader in fund administration, capital markets, corporate and fiduciary services. Ocorian help its clients solve complex problems so they can optimise investment performance and build their competitive advantage.

ENDS

Notes to editors

Please note that this press release is intended to provide a very general overview of the matters to which it relates and is provided for your convenience. It is not intended as legal or investment advice and should not be relied on as such.

*Ocorian commissioned independent research company PureProfile to conduct a global study of 300 senior executives. The survey was carried out among asset managers working in private equity, venture capital, real estate, infrastructure or private debt  board directors or senior executives of private or publicly listed companies with a minimum annual revenue of $10 million, companies operating in capital markets, wealth managers, family offices and professional services providers such as legal counsel working for alternative asset managers, large listed or unlisted corporates, family offices, wealth managers and capital markets professionals.  The survey was conducted in October 2024 in Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Norway, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, UAE, UK, US, Bahrain, Denmark, Italy, Kuwait, Portugal and Switzerland.

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 About Ocorian

Ocorian is a global leader in corporate and fiduciary services, fund administration and capital markets.

Supporting and protecting global investment is Ocorian’s priority; it manages over 17,000 structures on behalf of 8,000+ clients including financial institutions, large-scale international organisations, and high-net-worth individuals.

Ocorian provides fully compliant, tailored solutions that are individual to clients’ needs, no matter where in the world they hold financial interests, or however they are structured.

The group offers a full suite of corporate, fund and private client services across a network of offices spanning all the world’s financial hubs. Locations include Bermuda, BVI, Cayman, Denmark, Guernsey, Finland, Hong Kong, Ireland, Isle of Man, Jersey, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, UAE, the UK, and the US, and employs over 1,800 professionals.

To find out more about Ocorian and its services, including regulatory information, visit www.ocorian.com