GREECE Trends and Developments Contributed by: Stefanos Charaktiniotis, Danai Falconaki, Stathis Orfanoudakis and Nadia Axioti, Zepos & Yannopoulos
Protracted Deal Timelines Despite the upturn in deal activity observed in 2025, a countervailing trend has emerged: deal timelines have lengthened considerably, and an increasing number of transactions are being abandoned even after extend - ed negotiations. Several factors have contributed to protracted execution periods, including heightened regulatory scrutiny, more rigorous due diligence pro - cesses and persistent macroeconomic uncertainty. As a result, even transactions that advance to late stages are failing to complete at higher rates. This trend is consistent with broader conditions across the EMEA market, where well-capitalised buyers continue to close transactions but overall activity remains con - strained. Smaller companies and private equity firms have been less active, deterred by elevated borrow - ing costs, substantial transaction expenses, and per - sistent valuation gaps between buyers and sellers. Looking ahead in 2026, deal execution is expected to remain highly selective, with continued emphasis on strategic fit, value creation and robust deal structur - ing.
effective source of talent in areas such as maritime technology, fintech and IT services. In this context, Greek founders can strategically cap - italise on market dynamics. Prospective buyers are looking for a clear focus on specialised market seg - ments with a strong competitive position, intellectual property protection, and the ability to easily integrate their products or technology into larger platforms and distribution networks. In recent years, the maturation of the Greek technol - ogy ecosystem, as well as the continually expanding pool of companies with capable founders, has signifi - cantly increased the number of potential targets for such transactions. At the same time, foreign investors are strengthening their presence in Greece through subsidiaries focusing on research and development, while central management typically remains in larger markets. This business model preserves the auton - omy of the local workforce – engineers, developers and other specialists – while simultaneously securing access to broader resources and international distri - bution networks. All indications suggest that the factors favouring bolt- on acquisitions over large transactions will continue to persist. The fragmentation of the European market, funding disparities and the limited presence of large strategic buyers mean that smaller, incremental acqui - sitions will remain a key mechanism for growth and consolidation in the Greek and European technology sector.
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