Large-scale deals in energy, technology, and artificial intelligence (AI) are set to keep shaping M&A activity across the MENA region this year, as governments push ahead with economic diversification efforts.
The region recorded a robust performance in 2025, with the total value of announced M&A transactions surging 154% year-on-year to a record $193.1b, based on LSEG Deals Intelligence data.
Ahmed Salem, JP Morgan’s co-head of Investment Banking for MENA, said sectors such as energy, AI, and digital infrastructure are expected to remain key areas of dealmaking as countries in the region seek to establish global leadership in these industries.
Last year’s largest transaction in MENA was the $55b acquisition of US gaming company Electronic Arts by a consortium led by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. JP Morgan served as lead arranger for the debt financing and advised the consortium. Overall, M&A deal volume in MENA rose 19% to an all-time high of 1,380 transactions across sectors. JP Morgan ranked second in the LSEG league tables with 17 deals worth $62.6b, behind Goldman Sachs, whilst Rothschild & Co placed third with 29 deals.
Salem attributed the surge in dealmaking to national champions and well-capitalised sovereign wealth funds increasingly pursuing co-investments and direct acquisitions, with some shifting focus toward buyouts instead of venture or growth equity.
Among the notable national champion-led transactions was the $40b sale of US technology infrastructure firm Aligned Data Centres in October 2025 to a consortium including AI Infrastructure Partnership, BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Partners, and Mubadala-backed MGX from the UAE.
Although outbound M&A activity from MENA reached a record $101.2b in 2025, several major deals did not proceed. Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, for instance, withdrew its $19b bid for Australia’s Santos, which would have ranked among the year’s largest energy deals. JP Morgan had acted as one of the advisors. Salem said such transactions still highlight the region’s growing ambitions and dealmaking appetite.
Capital movement remained strong, with deals involving MENA-based targets reaching $80.5b in 2025, up 164% from the previous year. Salem noted that some regional players are balancing overseas investments with monetisation initiatives that are generating IPOs, secondary equity offerings, and in some cases full exits.
Hani Deaibes, JP Morgan’s co-head of Investment Banking for MENA, pointed to the expanding influence of the private sector, citing the January 2025 Gulf Data Hub deal, in which KKR acquired a stake and committed to invest more than $5b in GCC data infrastructure. He said the transaction demonstrated how family-owned businesses in the UAE can attract premium global capital and evolve into major success stories.
LSEG data showed that the materials sector led MENA M&A activity in 2025, accounting for 41% of total deal value, largely driven by the ADNOC and OMV merger of chemicals firms Borouge and Borealis. Real estate and energy followed as the next largest sectors by value, whilst financial services and technology recorded the highest number of transactions.
Looking ahead to 2026, geopolitical uncertainties, including prolonged US–Iran tensions, have unsettled markets. However, analysts and bankers believe the long-term impact on M&A activity will likely be limited.
Deaibes said the region is better prepared to withstand potential oil price pressures compared with previous downturns, expressing confidence in fiscal resilience and sustained deal activity. Salem added that cyclical fluctuations are typical in M&A and equity capital markets, and noted that another large-scale transaction comparable to the EA deal remains possible, given the region’s untapped growth potential and strategic ambitions.
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