Big-ticket deals lift Singapore M&A as volumes fall

Private equity and AI infrastructure drive record deal concentration.

Singapore’s mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are tilting toward bigger transactions as deal values surge even whilst volumes fall, pointing to more selective capital deployment.

M&As in the first five months more than doubled to $84.5b (US$65.9b), the second-highest level on record, Vianca Sanchez, a deal intelligence analyst at London Stock Exchange Group Plc, told Singapore Business Review in an emailed reply to questions.

She said eight transactions above $1.3b (US$1b) contributed $61.4b (US$47.9b), accounting for 73% of total deal value, up from 40% a year earlier. Deal count fell 29% to the lowest level in more than a decade.

Stephen Bates, a partner and head of deal advisory at KPMG in Singapore, said quarterly volumes remained broadly stable at 70 to 80 transactions, but total value rose on a higher share of large deals.

He said this reflects more selective capital deployment into assets with stronger growth visibility and execution confidence.

There were 78 deals worth about $23b (US$18b) to $24b (US$19b) in the first quarter, the strongest quarterly value in three years.

Big transactions included the $6.6b acquisition of an 82% stake in ST Telemedia Global Data Centres Pte. Ltd. by KKR & Co., Inc. and Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. (SingTel). There’s also KKR’s purchase of a majority stake in XCL Education Holdings Pte. Ltd., valuing the company at about $1.7b (US$1.3b).

Neha Singh, founder of Tracxn Technologies Ltd., said artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure is a key driver of deals as companies acquire systems needed to build AI capabilities.

She said another shift is toward capability-led acquisitions rather than pure market-share deals, citing Western Union Company’s purchase of Singcash Pte. Ltd. from SingTel as an example.

Sanchez said private equity has become a major driver of Singapore-targeted M&A.

Private equity deal value reached $9.4b (US$7.3b), almost four times a year earlier and the highest on record. It accounted for 37% of Singapore-target M&A value, up from about 17%.

Bates said interest is concentrated in digital infrastructure, data centres, education, and healthcare, where cash flows are more stable and growth is long-term.

He said financing conditions are stabilising and carve-out opportunities are increasing, supporting deal flow even as volumes remain subdued.

Singh said geopolitical uncertainty is keeping large buyers cautious on cross-border deals, whilst AI remains in early development, adding variability to near-term investment decisions.

“AI is still in its very early stages, and people are just figuring out how that unfolds,” she added.

S$1 = US$0.78