M&A Disputes Report 2024

M&A Disputes Expected to Increase Globally in a Challenging Deal Market

Global dealmakers expect more mergers and acquisitions (M&A) disputes in the year ahead as high interest rates, financing challenges and other pressures cast a persistent shadow over the deal landscape. These conditions are wreaking havoc on business calculations, deepening the risk of disputes over earnouts and other provisions as parties seek to limit risk or recover value from transactions.

Now in its fifth year, BRG’s M&A Disputes Report 2024 examines how macroeconomic and geopolitical trends are impacting the landscape across different sectors and regions; and includes predictions for how deals and disputes will take shape globally in the year ahead. The report draws on insights from BRG experts, qualitative interviews with disputes lawyers and a survey of 225 attorneys, private equity professionals and corporate finance advisors around the world.

Key takeaways include:

• Digital assets and services will be the leading area for M&A disputes thanks to turbulence in the cryptocurrency market, from major crypto figures pleading guilty to criminal charges to Bitcoin’s price skyrocketing, with more disruptions expected in 2024.
• The Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region is expected to lead dispute volume; EMEA also led when it came to increases in M&A dispute volumes in 2023. Dealmakers cite legal structures across the region as a major cause.
• Environmental, social and governance (ESG)–related M&A disputes are on the rise amid a range of challenges, from ESG claims around sale terms and greenwashing to data privacy and employment-related issues like fair pay and equal employment opportunities. Respondents expect regulatory scrutiny and political and investor pressure around ESG to further increase in 2024.

This year’s report also delves into artificial intelligence (AI), which is making inroads in the dealmaking process in valuations, risk mitigation and due diligence, particularly in private equity. As BRG experts explain, AI also presents new risks for dealmakers that could drive disputes in the year ahead.