AUSTRIA Trends and Developments Contributed by: Markus Fellner, Paul Luiki and Peter Blaschke, Fellner Wratzfeld & Partner
Fellner Wratzfeld & Partner Schottenring 12 1010 Vienna Austria Tel: +43 1 537 70 0 Fax: +43 1 537 70 70 Email: marketing@fwp.at Web: www.fwp.at
Overview of the Austrian M&A Market In 2025, the Austrian M&A market exhibited increasing signs of stabilisation. A total of 221 transactions were announced, reflecting a 9.8% decrease compared to the previous year. Despite the fall in deal activity, however, the overall transaction volume massively spiked by 292% to EUR19.6 billion. Therefore, con - trary to the previous year, the Austrian M&A market again experienced multiple megadeals, which is in line with the global environment. However, contrary to global developments, the number of transactions and transaction volume in the Austrian M&A market excluding the mega deals suggests that while mergers and acquisitions remained dynamic, the average deal size was significantly smaller. As in many other jurisdictions, numerous macro - economic factors impacted Austria’s M&A activ - ity in 2025, still including geopolitical tensions, high financing costs and increased regulatory scrutiny. All of this combined created a more complex and chal - lenging investment environment. These elements led to greater caution among investors, resulting in a more selective approach to deal-making. Despite the broad incorporation of artificial intelligence (AI) tools into M&A deal structures, which facilitate vari - ous processes such as conducting due diligence, overall longer approval processes and increased due diligence requirements shaped the dynamics of the Austrian M&A market. Following an analysis by PricewaterhouseCoopers of the global M&A industry trends in 2026, AI continues to have a strong impact on the global M&A market. The impact of AI undoubtedly is also present in the Aus -
trian M&A market. On the one hand, the process shifts from being time- and labour-intensive to being data- driven and faster-paced. This is because machine learning algorithms enable stakeholders to bypass traditional research mechanisms by systematically scanning available data, such as patent filings, press releases and web traffic, to identify targets that align with strategic goals. Furthermore, AI is revolutionising valuation and post-merger integration by quantifying previously intangible assets, such as brand strength and cultural compatibility, and by predicting the reali - sation rates of synergies. This technological integra - tion enables M&A practitioners to shift their focus from administrative data processing to high-level strategic decision-making. However, it should be noted that the ever-rising investment in AI ties up financial resources in the short term, with the potential to facilitate trans - formation processes within market participants and acquire technological resources. The majority of deals occurred in the industrial sector, which recorded the highest number of transactions, totalling 66. The five largest deals constituted almost 95% of the aggregate transaction volume, while the remaining 5% was distributed across 216 other M&A transactions. The mean transaction volume stood at EUR89 million, highlighting a concentration of larger deals within a specific subset of transactions. The largest single transaction of 2025 was the merger of Borealis and Borouge and the acquisition of Nova Chemicals for EUR8.9 billion. This outbound mega- deal represented a significant milestone in the Aus - trian M&A market, reflecting strategic considerations as a major driver behind M&A transactions.
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