RIYADH: The Middle East and North Africa region completed 390 mergers and acquisitions deals valued at $46.7 billion in the first half of 2026, underscoring the resilience of the market amid geopolitical conflicts, an analysis showed.
Deal value climbed to $25 billion in the second quarter, more than doubling from $12.2 billion a year earlier, according to EY’s latest MENA M&A report.
The increase came even though overall activity slowed compared to the first half of 2025, when 434 deals worth $58.8 billion were recorded, as the ongoing US-Iran conflict weighed on investor sentiment.
A separate PwC study published in July found that M&A activity in the Middle East totaled an estimated 272 transactions in the six months to the end of June, down about 8 percent from a year earlier, with Saudi Arabia recording 74 transactions during the period.
Commenting on his firm’s latest report, Brad Watson, MENA EY-Parthenon leader, said: “The first half of 2026 has shown the strength and resilience of MENA’s M&A market, with strategic investors continuing to pursue long-term growth opportunities despite a more measured global investment environment.”
