2022 was another standout year for the BDO M&A teams in Yorkshire and the North West, with 36 deals completed across the region with a total value of over £900m.

Nationally, BDO LLP advised on 362 deals in 2022 with a total value of £31.2 billion.

Factset has ranked BDO, globally and in the UK, as number one for deals by volume in 2022, with BDO also taking top spot for financial due diligence in the Mergermarket accounting league tables.

Accountancy and business advisory firm, BDO LLP, advised on 36 deals in 2022 across the North West and Yorkshire, with a total value of c.£1 billion.

Among these deals, 69% of transactions involved private equity. Deals spanned a range of sectors, including technology, manufacturing, recruitment, financial services, food and drink, leisure, transport and logistics, and construction and business support services, as well as healthcare and life sciences.

Jason Whitworth, Corporate Finance Partner, M&A, in the North, said:

"When you consider the economic headwinds that have been blowing strongly against businesses in 2022, the regional deals market over the last 12 months has been extraordinarily resilient.

"Interestingly, deals are still getting done across all sectors, particularly those sectors where long-term macro-economic and social tailwinds support long-term growth. Specifically, deal volumes in Business Services, Financial Services and TMT remain strong, as the adoption of technology continues at pace and accelerated by a desire to realise cost efficiencies."

Notable deals for the northern teams include advising on digital agency CTI Holdings Limited's investment by LDC, the sale of Hickory's Smokehouse to Greene King, the acquisition of Taskmaster Resources by IPE Ventures, Synova's investment in retail proptech platform Malcomm, the acquisition of TM Financial Forensics by HKA, Westbridge's investment in Alpine Fire and the investment by NorthEdge Capital into life sciences marketing specialist ramarketing.

Jim Fieldhouse, Managing Director at BDO added:

"Consistently, we see fantastic management teams in great businesses, and business owners who have faced the most enormous struggles in recent years, who have taken everything in their stride and thrived. When you also consider the quality of businesses we have in the North, then there are so many reasons to be optimistic for 2023.

"The good news is that many corporates continue to see M&A as a core part of their growth strategy and investors have abundant capital. M&A drivers remain strong, as acquirers pursue digital transformation, green transition, new technologies, new growth markets and scaling up to become more competitive. As valuations have also softened from 2021, companies and investors understand there will be opportunities to seize."

Nationally, BDO advised on 362 deals in 2022 with a total value of £31.2 billion. Among these deals, transactions involving private equity accounted for two thirds of the deals completed, with BDO's overall deal volume outperforming the global M&A market.

Factset has ranked BDO, globally and in the UK, as number one for deals by volume in 2022, with BDO also taking top spot for financial due diligence in the UK Mergermarket accounting league tables.