Frank Aquila, S&C’s Senior M&A Partner, and Jeremy Kutner, Partner in S&C’s London office, co-hosted a roundtable marking the launch of Global Legal Post’s Law Over Borders Global M&A Guide, of which Frank served as editor. The discussion, which focused on trends driving the global M&A market, featured contributing authors from 29 countries across Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and North America.
Frank and Jeremy highlighted several defining themes shaping today’s M&A market, including the rise of artificial intelligence, an increase in megadeals and a trend toward regulatory analysis. The discussion also emphasized a more cautious approach to cross-border transactions in an environment shaped by geopolitical and regulatory uncertainty.
On the use of AI, Frank noted, “There is a tremendous amount of capital moving toward the AI business. Whether it’s AI M&A, AI infrastructure or AI disrupting businesses and therefore causing transactions to move forward at a certain pace, AI is something that will be in and around every transaction we look at.” Jeremy added that even as technology reshapes deal execution, “information is becoming commoditized” while “judgement isn’t” and that lawyers’ enduring value lies in serving as “trusted advisers” to their clients.
Read the Global Legal Post article: ‘Information is Becoming Commoditised; Judgement Isn’t: Dealmakers Debate Impact of AI on Cross-Border M&A’