As I write this article, I am in the United States working on the acquisition of a company on behalf of a Central European client. While it is a small transaction, to see a Central European company working on a US acquisition gives me special satisfaction.

Of course, this isn't the first acquisition by a Central European company of a company in the West. But compared to the thousands of companies that have been purchased in Central Europe by Western European or North American investors, there has really only been a trickle of transactions going in the reverse direction. The first chart below sets out a list of transactions that have been completed by Central European companies in Western Europe, and the second chart sets out the acquisitions in North America, since January 1, 2009.

 

Acquisitions by Central EuropeanCompanies in Western Europe
since January 1, 2009 (click on image to see larger view)

Source:Mergermarket

 

 

 

 

What can be said about these transactions?

• The transactions are relatively few and small
• It is mostly Polish and Czech companies that have been active in this regard (although my own client is from the Balkans)
• It remains to be seen whether there will be an increasing trend of such transactions
• It also remains to be seen what the success rate of these transactions will be

While one swallow does not a summer make, it is heartening to see the first sign of Central European companies coming of age, and becoming sufficiently strong to make acquisitions outside the region.