The last two years have seen decreased deal activity, largely due to incompatible valuation expectations between investors and management teams, as well as economic and geopolitical uncertainty. Across the board, we at Aalto have seen longer processes and greater hesitation…
In previous articles, Aalto Capital has explored several key trends shaping the software industry, such as the size premium that favours larger companies and the role of the Rule of 40 in balancing growth and profitability.
In 2016 the global debt was approximately $220 trillion, 320% of global GDP. This ratio has continued to increase over the last 8 years, due to various factors such as increased social spending and COVID support funding.
Novo Nordisk’s rapid rise as Europe’s largest company has largely been attributed to its ground-breaking drug, Semaglutide, which is the active ingredient in Ozempic, Novo Nordisk’s diabetes medication, and its weight loss medication, Wegovy.
In early August, investors were spooked by a jump in the US unemployment rate, which had risen to 4.3% in July. This is the highest level in three years and sparked a widespread sell-off. Concerns, however, that this increase signals the start of a more severe economic downturn are likely exaggerated.
Last year, Aalto published an article on the Rule of 40, a metric that balances growth and profitability to measure SaaS company valuations. The previous analysis, based on research by Allied Advisors, examined 149 SaaS companies and defined the Rule of 40 as the sum of revenue growth and net profit margin.
Increased interest rates have undoubtedly made the private equity landscape more complex and challenging.
Leveraged buyouts, a common PE strategy, and high interest rates do not go hand in hand. With the increased borrowing costs, LBOs are significantly more expensive, making it harder to achieve the high level of returns that LPs expect.
Climate tech has become a common term throughout the investment world, and though there is plenty of evidence pointing to its efficacy, there are still concerns about reaching the levels of change required to make headway against global warming.
Cross-border mergers and acquisitions offer several benefits, such as market expansion, access to new technologies, and diversification of revenue streams. Given our European corporate finance advisory network, cross-border M&A remains an important part of our business and we are engaged in a number of cross-border transactions.
Global markets have experienced the most rapid and aggressive rate hiking cycle of this century. Remarkably, global economic conditions have remained resilient. Labour markets have been robust, consumer spending has held strong, and we are yet to see anything meaningful in the way of defaults.