In a period of extreme volatility across all dimensions, the environment for global dealmaking is as complex and fragmented as ever. Multiple external factors are influencing both the appetite for M&A transactions and their execution. Market participants must navigate a landscape in which transaction timelines, risk allocation and approval processes have become increasingly difficult to predict.

The discussion will examine how companies, investors and their advisers are adjusting their strategies, including shifts in cross-border activity and transaction structuring, approaches to purchase price mechanisms, and the overall impact on deal certainty. It will also address the challenges private equity faces in the current environment and diverging dealmaking conditions across regions, as well as highlight opportunities emerging from these dynamics and how they are shaping M&A activity in 2026.