Mergers and acquisitions on 'a healthy uptick'

GUERNSEY saw 'a healthy uptick' in merger and acquisition activity in the last quarter of 2012 as part of a surge of offshore deals over the period.

During the three months the offshore markets experienced their largest quarter-to-quarter rise in M&A transactions for the last three years, according to the latest quarterly Offshore-i report from law firm Appleby.

It noted what it called a 'substantial increase' in the money spent on Guernsey targets.

'Notwithstanding the euro crisis and other macro challenges, 2012 has been a busy transactional year for Guernsey, particularly from a fund and fund management perspective, where we have seen a number of large deals, including new entrants to the market,' said Barney Lee, practice group head for the corporate and commercial department in Guernsey, pictured.