Software & Technology M&A Pulse – Q3 2021

M&A Market Dynamics – Software & Technology

• The third quarter of 2021 was like that of the first quarter, with global M&A volume registering a value of $359B with 1,174 deal announcements, making it the second-best quarter on record in terms of value.
• Propelled by the unprecedented transaction values through the first nine months, aggregate deal volume surpassed the trillion-dollar mark for the first time. This is largely driven by a substantial increase in spending by strategic buyers compared to 2020, the highest number of $1B+ transactions, and continued strong investment by financial buyers.
• Deal volume increased 9% in the first nine months of 2021 when compared to the first nine months of 2020, with the number of transactions climbing to 3,138.

Sector Spotlight – E-Commerce and Retail

In 2021, information security became a priority for Chief Information Officers globally as it became clear that working remotely is a long-term trend. The growing sophistication of ransomware attacks and rapidly increasing threat surfaces make data breaches increasingly probable. To address this need, data protection & encryption solutions provide backup in the event of ransomware attacks.

The shift to working from home that COVID spurred in March 2020 brought a heightened demand for security services as operational technology attacks increased more than 2,000% compared to 2019(1). Companies worldwide tasked CIOs to make security a priority, as investments in enterprise security are now reaching the mid-double digits, with most major software categories surpassing 20% growth(2). Information security will continue to be a focus of enterprises globally as the office disruption impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are likely here to stay.

1. PitchBook, Cybersecurity startups near record funding as hacks take spotlight
2. PitchBook, Emerging Tech Research: Information Security Q3 2021 VC update

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