Marking a strong start to 2023, the estimated value of the Romanian M&A activity was also higher on a year-on-year basis, at USD2.5 billion cmpared to USD1.9 billion in the first quarter of 2022 due to a 53% increase in the value of disclosed transactions.
The largest deal of the first quarter was the sale of Italy-based Enel Group’s operations in Romania to Public Power Corporation, the main electric power company in Greece, for approximately USD1.4 billion. Another notable transaction during this period was the acquisition of local bakery Vel Pitar by Mexico-based Grupo Bimbo for an estimated USD 210m. Furthermore, there where three transactions over USD100 million announced during the first quarter of 2023.
Strategic investors continue to be the dominant players, accounting for 84% of transactions during this period. Domestic transactions registered a 94% advance in Q1/2023 when compared to the same period last year, counting 33 transactions, while foreign players decreased their activity by 42% on the Romanian market (21 transactions) compared to the first quarter of 2022. In terms of country origin of investment, the most active investors came from Germany (three deals), followed by the United States, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Israel, each recording two transactions.
The top three most active sectors by volume in the first quarter of 2023 were Consumer Products & Retail (13 deals), Real Estate, Hospitality & Construction (11 deals) and Technology (seven deals).