Mergermarket M&A Forum - Italy 2022
The premier M&A forum in Italy
Hotel Principe di Savoia, Milan and Online
This event will be in English
Agenda
08:25
- 08:50
CEST
Registration and coffee
08:55
- 09:20
CEST
Opening keynote – A global market outlook with a focus on Italy
This keynote speech will examine the current macro-economic trends and their impact on the M&A and private equity environment in Italy.
- Taking stock of the impact of recent events and subsequent pressure on financial markets
- Are on-going geopolitical tensions and trade issues affecting M&A in Italy?
- Reading the signs: what can be expected from the year ahead? Will shareholder activists be triggered by lower valuations?
09:20
- 10:05
CEST
Panel discussion – Deal activity in Italy: Energy and Technology as drivers for growth
Italy is coming out of a strong year, demonstrating the country’s ability to withstand the pandemic and post-pandemic blows. The government measures stimulated economy and supported business and, importantly, Italian businesses themselves showed their power to evolve, adapt to the new situation and be resilient. As a result, growth of M&A is expected to be amongst the highest in Europe despite current global uncertainties.
Traditional sectors continue to underpin the M&A world, notably real estate and construction, logistics and warehousing, manufacturing, luxury, F&B, etc – with energy and technology & digital leading the way.
- Digital disruption in M&A: mergers, acquisitions and disposals to be competitive in the digital era
- What are the digital opportunities emerging post-pandemic?
- Hunger for clean energy investments
- How active is corporate venture capital, and what role do they play in the ecosystem?
- Understanding the challenges of investing in these sectors, and how to navigate them
- What is the preferred method of exit?
10:05
- 10:45
CEST
Panel discussion – Debt and M&A financing: opportunities in 2022 and beyond
M&A activity is the inevitable next step for many companies seeking to divest, streamline their portfolios and focus on their core business. This benefitted M&A issuers that were able to gain more traction among syndicating banks and investors that had the bandwidth to consider new money opportunities. At the same time, any rise in interest rates will be scrutinised by buyers and lenders alike, as it could impact deal activity significantly. Could this burst of M&A activity – if inflation continues to put pressure on margins and rates rise through the year – be dampened by the end of 2022?
- Impact on portfolio and impact on interest rates and inflation
- New core infrastructure: how debt is providing security & opportunity for forward-thinking investors
- Have investors pushed leverage too far?
- Is demand for junior debt still strong?
- Understanding the emergence of the green infrastructure debt brand
- Debt vs. Equity
- Leverage buyout and new European forms of financing
- Opportunities for sponsor-less lending for mid-cap companies?
- Alternative finance and industrial goals: corporate venture capital between open innovation and Fintech
10:45
- 11:10
CEST
Coffee and networking
11:10
- 11:55
CEST
Panel discussion – Risk management and due diligence best practices
Under the current uncertain political and economic environment, dealmaking in Italy faces additional volatility and risk, including those coming from the growing public role within the sector. Corporates must be well-equipped to counteract threats and mitigate risks: comprehensive due diligence, risk planning and appropriate forms of transaction insurance will be needed to ensure that corporates are risk-ready in the current climate.
- Facing growing public role within M&A: PNRR, Golden Rule, CDP
- Impact of the additional measures introduced by the government on M&A and foreign investments: budget law, Decreto Sostegni
- Antitrust risks and information sharing during the due diligence process
- Cross-border operations and in-house experience
- Reform of the Bankruptcy Law: is distressed M&A an increasingly useful tool to make companies more resilient?
- How can companies avoid data and cyber security breaches?
11:55
- 12:35
CEST
Panel discussion – Leveraging opportunities in ESG and sustainability
Companies are changing the way they approach potential acquisitions from the due diligence, financing, and risk perspectives, with ESG considerations now being a key factor in dealmaking. This is part of the broader quest for a more sustainable way of doing business, committing to environmental issues, diversity and supply-chain goals.
- Regulation and compliance
- Promoting investments in R&D&I and sustainable business development thought The New Italian Green Deal
- Is ESG a game changer when it comes to dealmaking? How?
- Is shareholder activism on the rise in Italy? And how does it affect dealmaking?
- Which of the ESG components – environmental, social or governance – tend to be more challenging for Italian companies to achieve their KPIs on?
- Which are the mid-term/long-term goals to be achieved by banks, companies and investors?
12:35
- 12:50
CEST
Coffee and networking
12:50
- 13:10
CEST
Presentation: The long view of M&A – private equity vs corporate acquirors
If you are a corporate acquiror in 2022 then private equity is coming to eat your lunch - or to eat you. With M&A multiples at 30-year highs find out how competition between private equity and strategic acquirors for deals is driving a valuation frenzy, how private equity is gate-crashing strategic acquirors' growth plans, and how corporate acquirors are responding.
13:10
- 13:50
CEST
Panel discussion – Trends shaping the future of M&A and Private Equity in Italy
The positive trends we have seen, which were also founded on the hope that the worst of the pandemic was behind, may be affected by a new growth in hospitalisations, business closures, climate change and water shortages, war, energy (including oil and gas) shortages, inflation and, more generally, fear of the future. On the other hand, these emergencies also create opportunities for business: in Italy, for example, investments in renewables, particularly solar arrays, hydrogen and wind farms, is again reaching new heights.
- Top industries and sectors to invest in right now
- Permanent capital vehicles: new opportunities for long term investments
- Top fund-raising practices – leveraging the growing investor appetite
- Hyperinvestment
- Leading value creation strategies in private equity today
- What LPs are looking for in 2023
13:55
- 14:55
CEST
Lunch
Lead Strategic Sponsors
Strategic Sponsors
