2024 UK financial services M&A activity hits highest volume in over a decade: EY
- July 2, 2025
- Posted by: Beth Musselwhite
- Category: Insurance
In 2024, M&A activity in the UK financial services sector reached its highest annual volume since 2012, with UK banks, insurers, and asset managers publicly disclosing 380 deals, according to a recent EY report.
This marked a 26% increase in deal volume compared to 272 deals in 2023. The total disclosed value of these deals also rose, from £12.5 billion in 2023 to £20.2 billion in 2024.
Damian Hourquebie, UK Financial Services Strategy and Transactions Leader at EY, commented, “UK financial services M&A activity reached its highest annual volume in more than a decade in 2024, as material signs of economic recovery lifted market confidence, valuations rose, and inbound deals increased.
“While there are real signs for optimism, a sense of macroeconomic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions further abroad could create headwinds as we look to the year ahead. However, if the UK’s economic outlook continues to gradually improve as expected, we anticipate the focus on M&A activity will continue throughout 2025 as confidence grows and firms accelerate plans to transform.”
EY reported that the number of UK banking deals increased from 53 in 2023 to 70 in 2024, although the total disclosed deal value fell slightly from £6.7 billion to £6.3 billion.
In UK insurance, the number of deals rose from 112 in 2023 to 188 in 2024, with total disclosed deal value increasing from £3.7 billion to £4.6 billion.
Wealth and asset management M&A activity also grew, from 107 deals in 2023 to 122 in 2024, with total deal value surging from £2.1 billion to £9.3 billion.
Additionally, the number of non-UK firms acquiring UK targets rose from 54 in 2023 to 74 in 2024, although the total value dropped from £6.7 billion to £3.9 billion. UK firms acquiring overseas targets grew from 65 deals in 2023 to 97 in 2024, with the overall deal value remaining flat at £1.7 billion.
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