UBS tops GP advisor rankings

UBS Investment Bank topped MergerMarket’s global financial advisor league table after working on buyouts worth $44.8 billion in 2013. This marks a significant shift from the 13 deals the bank advised on in 2012, collectively valued at about $10 billion.

Last year’s rankings also featured other climbers, with Lazard and Wells Fargo Securities entering the top ten list of most trusted private equity advisors after coming in the middle of the pack in the 2012 rankings.

As for the most globally active firms, UBS placed second (working on 24 deals throughout 2013) improving its ranking by 17 places.

Deloitte topped the global league table for buyouts by volume, working on 27 deals (worth a combined $957 million), with Goldman Sachs and Ernst & Young tying for second, advising on 23 deals (worth $13 billion and $4 billion respectively).

Another significant climber in this category was again Lazard (climbing from 24th to 11th) after doubling its global deal volume to 16 in 2013. The firm also greatly improved its Asia rankings rocketing from 40th to top of the league table by value with $5.5 billion’s worth of buyouts. This value came across three buyouts which were enough to lift Lazard from 40th to joint fifth in the rankings by volume.

For US deals, UBS continued its strong showing placing second by value with $33 billion worth of buyouts and topped the league table by volume with 15 deals.

The picture was different in Europe. Credit Suisse’s eight buyouts advised worth $8 billion were enough for the firm to top the European chart by value. PwC’s 21 deals (worth $3.8 billion) topped the 2013 volume rankings, despite the firm having done 12 more deals the previous year.