AAB’s report highlights selected M&A transactions, fundraising transactions as well as AAB transactions. The report also lists current opportunities in terms of active acquirers, investment opportunities and disposal mandates.

With the continued success of the vaccine roll out and the easing of lockdown restrictions, Q1 2021 has given AAB reason to be hopeful that the world will soon be back to somewhat of normality in the not so distant future.

AAB said that the anticipation for this has overflowed into the M&A market where it has seen a busy and eventful start to the year, aided by the anticipated potential changes to rules around UK Capital Gains Tax which helped drive deal volumes in the first quarter.

During Q1 2021, AAB saw a number of stand out transactions, with Renfrew based environmental and energy technology solution provider Howden Group acquiring Peter Brotherhood for £35m along with packaging company the MacFarlane Group acquiring leading UK Packaging manufacturer, GWP Holdings for £15.1m.

AAB’s Corporate Finance team advised on GEG Capital’s acquisition of marine recruitment firm Genesis Personnel as well as supporting asset management solution provider C-SAM in their disposal to the acquisitive Jonas Software.

PE and VC funds have been leading the way in the uptick of deal activity, equipped with capital and an appetite to invest there has been no slowing them down in Q1 2021, with tech firm Cyan Forensics who help find illegal digital content, successfully raising £5m from a group of investors led by PAR Equity. Elsewhere, Amphista Therapeutics a biopharmaceutical company received £38.1m in Series B funding from Forbion and Gilde Healthcare, with funds being used to accelerate its growth of bifunctional molecules.

As we head into Q2 2021, AAB said it continues to ride the positive momentum that Q1 has brought us and the firm expects there to be a healthy number of opportunities and deals to be done during the course of 2021.

Throughout the first quarter of the year, a series of mergers and acquisitions transactions were undertaken by AAB. Some of these included the takeover of Peter Brotherhood by Howden Group for £35m, the sale of NN4M to Wunderman Thompson LLC and the sale of J&J Stanley Recycling to NWH Group.

Earlier in the year, AAB oversaw the purchase of Redspire by Incremental Group, the takeover of YOYO Games by Opera Software for £7.3m, the sale of KB Agencies to JW Filshill and the buyout of Borland Insurance by AssuredParterns Inc.

AAB has highlighted a number of opportunities within the report in the technology, healthcare, food & drink and recruitment & training sectors.

The full list of mergers and acquisitions and current opportunities can be found within the full report.