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2mo ago

Foreign Takeovers of UK Firms Hit Four-Year High in Q4 on Wave of Mega-Deals

ONS data highlight a few billion‑pound transactions driven by overseas buyers attracted by lower UK valuations.

Deliveroo accepted a £2.9 billion offer from its American rival DoorDash last May. The deal completed at the end of the year
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Overview

  • Foreign acquisitions of UK companies reached £27.4bn in Q4 2025, the highest quarterly total in four years, up from £7.6bn in Q3, according to the ONS.
  • The spike was concentrated in three deals over £1bn, including DoorDash’s £2.9bn purchase of Deliveroo, KKR’s £4.8bn takeover of Spectris, and Athora’s £5.7bn acquisition of Pension Insurance Corporation.
  • Domestic UK dealmaking fell to £1.8bn in Q4 and outward M&A dropped to £1.7bn, underscoring weakness in local and outbound activity versus strong inbound interest.
  • Advisers cite a valuation gap as a key draw, with McKinsey estimating average UK EV/EBITDA at 7.7 versus 13.8 in the US, alongside clear governance and scalable management in UK businesses.
  • Private equity interest remains active into 2026, with Senior confirming a preliminary, non-binding all-cash offer from a Blackstone-led consortium as advisers forecast larger public-to-private deals lifting overall values.