The Big Four firms are emerging as powerful dealmakers, with EY, PwC and KPMG leading the league tables, according to the 2024 Mergermarket rankings.
EY leads the India league tables in terms of deal count (51 deals) and value ($16.9 billion). PwC ranks second in deal count (25), while KPMG is at the fourth position (16). Across the top three leagues - Mergermarket, Refinitiv/LSEG and Bloomberg - EY and PwC routinely rank first and third, respectively.
The other Big Four firm, Deloitte, has a big M&A practice, but its data was not found in the league tables.
"The recently concluded Haldiram deal was a defining transaction for our firm. We are looking to back more such moves that shift business trajectories be it legacy or new," said PwC India chairperson Sanjeev Krishan.
League deal tables normally include only independent corporate finance transactions, while the Big Four frequently do corporate finance work while working on tax, due diligence or valuation components of transactions in which no separate corporate finance advisor is recruited.
As long as the client supplies a credential, the transaction is included, giving them a strategic advantage in the rankings. EY now has India's largest pure-play investment banking team, with more than 25 partners and 200 specialists.
In 2024, EY worked on deals like Orient Cement-CK Birla Group, ITD Cementation-Adani Group and New Mountain Capital-Access Healthcare deal. PwC was involved in the Adani Power-Coastal Energen, Ind-Swift-IndiaRF and MG Motors-JSW deals, while KPMG worked on the Carlye-Roop deal and Fairfax-Global Aluminium transactions, among others.
The deep relationships Big Four have built with companies over time through regular audit, tax or consulting work has helped them.
Over the years, the firms have also expanded their role from offering just tax, due diligence, and valuation services to covering the entire deal lifecycle - from pre-deal work like financial and commercial due diligence and valuations, to generating deal ideas, matchmaking, tax structuring, and post-deal support focused on maximising shareholder value.
"Our relationships run deep, and our all-under-one-roof model beats banks and boutiques on value and impact," said Dinesh Arora, Deals Leader, PwC India.
Notably, the India CEOs at two of the Big Four firms, Rajiv Memani at EY and Sanjeev Krishan at PwC, hail from the deal-making side of business, not traditional audit, tax or consulting roots.
The firms started out as mainly mid-market players, focusing on smaller but higher-volume deals, but have now clearly found a foothold in larger, more complex transactions.
Given the strong deal flow, competition among the firms is also intensifying - EY is investing to retain its lead, PwC is emerging as a strong contender, KPMG is consolidating its sectoral strengths, and Deloitte is expanding aggressively.
"Our share of deals above $200 million is in the range of 40%," said Rohit Berry, president of the strategy, risk & transactions practice at Deloitte South Asia.
At any given time, it is estimated that between 5,000 and 6,000 professionals across the Big Four are actively working on different elements of M&A and private equity deals.
EY leads the India league tables in terms of deal count (51 deals) and value ($16.9 billion). PwC ranks second in deal count (25), while KPMG is at the fourth position (16). Across the top three leagues - Mergermarket, Refinitiv/LSEG and Bloomberg - EY and PwC routinely rank first and third, respectively.
The other Big Four firm, Deloitte, has a big M&A practice, but its data was not found in the league tables.
"The recently concluded Haldiram deal was a defining transaction for our firm. We are looking to back more such moves that shift business trajectories be it legacy or new," said PwC India chairperson Sanjeev Krishan.
League deal tables normally include only independent corporate finance transactions, while the Big Four frequently do corporate finance work while working on tax, due diligence or valuation components of transactions in which no separate corporate finance advisor is recruited.
As long as the client supplies a credential, the transaction is included, giving them a strategic advantage in the rankings. EY now has India's largest pure-play investment banking team, with more than 25 partners and 200 specialists.
In 2024, EY worked on deals like Orient Cement-CK Birla Group, ITD Cementation-Adani Group and New Mountain Capital-Access Healthcare deal. PwC was involved in the Adani Power-Coastal Energen, Ind-Swift-IndiaRF and MG Motors-JSW deals, while KPMG worked on the Carlye-Roop deal and Fairfax-Global Aluminium transactions, among others.
The deep relationships Big Four have built with companies over time through regular audit, tax or consulting work has helped them.
Over the years, the firms have also expanded their role from offering just tax, due diligence, and valuation services to covering the entire deal lifecycle - from pre-deal work like financial and commercial due diligence and valuations, to generating deal ideas, matchmaking, tax structuring, and post-deal support focused on maximising shareholder value.
"Our relationships run deep, and our all-under-one-roof model beats banks and boutiques on value and impact," said Dinesh Arora, Deals Leader, PwC India.
Notably, the India CEOs at two of the Big Four firms, Rajiv Memani at EY and Sanjeev Krishan at PwC, hail from the deal-making side of business, not traditional audit, tax or consulting roots.
The firms started out as mainly mid-market players, focusing on smaller but higher-volume deals, but have now clearly found a foothold in larger, more complex transactions.
Given the strong deal flow, competition among the firms is also intensifying - EY is investing to retain its lead, PwC is emerging as a strong contender, KPMG is consolidating its sectoral strengths, and Deloitte is expanding aggressively.
"Our share of deals above $200 million is in the range of 40%," said Rohit Berry, president of the strategy, risk & transactions practice at Deloitte South Asia.
At any given time, it is estimated that between 5,000 and 6,000 professionals across the Big Four are actively working on different elements of M&A and private equity deals.
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