List of largest mergers and acquisitions
The following tables list the largest mergers and acquisitions by decade of transaction. Transaction values are given in the US dollar value for the year of the merger, adjusted for inflation. As of February 2024[update], the largest ever acquisition was the 1999 takeover of Mannesmann by Vodafone Airtouch plc at $183 billion ($334.7 billion adjusted for inflation). AT&T appears in these lists the most times with five entries, for a combined transaction value of $311.4 billion. Mergers and acquisitions are notated with the year the transaction was initiated, not necessarily completed. Mergers are shown as the market value of the combined entities.
Free market enterprises
[edit]1870s
[edit]Top M&A deal worldwide by value from 1870 to 1879:
Rank | Year | Purchaser | Purchased | Transaction value (in billions USD) | [1] Inflation adjusted (in billions USD) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1879 | Pacific Coast Oil Company[2] | Star Oil | 0.001 | 0.033 |
1900s
[edit]Top 3 M&A deals worldwide by value from 1900 to 1909:
Rank | Year | Purchaser | Purchased | Transaction value (in billions USD) | [1] Inflation adjusted (in billions USD) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1901 | United States Steel Corporation[3] | Carnegie Steel Company Federal Steel Company National Steel Company | 0.492 | 18 |
2 | 1907 | New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Company[4] | Boston and Maine Corporation | 0.310 | 10.1 |
3 | 1909 | Interborough Rapid Transit Company[5][6] | Metropolitan Street Railway | 0.222 | 7.5 |
1910s
[edit]Top 3 M&A deals worldwide by value from 1910 to 1919:
Rank | Year | Purchaser | Purchased | Transaction value (in billions USD) | [1] Inflation adjusted (in billions USD) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1915 | Midvale Steel Company[7][8] | Remington Arms Company Worth Brothers Company | 0.100 | 3 |
2 | 1915 | United Dry Goods[9] | Associated Merchants Company | 0.050 | 1.5 |
3 | 1918 | General Motors[10] | United Motors Company | 0.045 | 0.912 |
1920s
[edit]Top 5 M&A deals worldwide by value from 1920 to 1929:
Rank | Year | Purchaser | Purchased | Transaction value (in billions USD) | [1] Inflation adjusted (in billions USD) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1928 | Consolidated Gas Company of New York[11] | Brooklyn Edison Company | 1.0 | 17.7 |
2 | 1929 | Niagara and Eastern Power Corporation[12] | MohawkHudson Power Corporation Northeastern Power Corporation | 0.665 | 11.8 |
3 | 1928 | United Light and Power Company[13] | American Light and Traction | 0.522 | 9.3 |
4 | 1928 | Hodenpyl & Hardy[11][14] | Stevens & Wood | 0.500 | 8.9 |
5 | 1928 | Middle West Utilities[11] | National Electric Power National Public Service New England Public Service Inland Power and Light | 0.400 | 7.1 |
1930s
[edit]Top 5 M&A deals worldwide by value from 1930 to 1939:
Rank | Year | Purchaser | Purchased | Transaction value (in billions USD) | [1] Inflation adjusted (in billions USD) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1930 | Pacific Gas and Electric Company[15] | Great Western Power Company San Joaquin Light and Power Corporation Midland Counties Public Service Corporation | 0.650 | 11.9 |
2 | 1932 | Sinclair Consolidated Oil Corporation[16][17] | Prairie Oil and Gas Prairie Pipe Line Company | 0.542 | 12.1 |
3 | 1934 | Republic Steel[18] | Corrigan-McKinney Steel Corporation | 0.323 | 7.4 |
4 | 1931 | Bethlehem Steel[19] | Pittsburgh Steel Company | 0.080 | 1.6 |
5 | 1932 | Studebaker Corporation[20] | White Motor Company | 0.026 | 0.581 |
1940s
[edit]Top 5 M&A deals worldwide by value from 1940 to 1949:
Rank | Year | Purchaser | Purchased | Transaction value (in billions USD) | [1] Inflation adjusted (in billions USD) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1949 | Pan American Airways[21] | American Overseas Airlines | 0.059 | 0.756 |
2 | 1943 | Manufacturers Light and Heat Company[22] | Manufacturers Gas Company Pennsylvania Fuel Supply Company Greensboro Gas Company | 0.038 | 0.669 |
3 | 1949 | Union Oil of California[23] | Los Nietos Company | 0.022 | 0.282 |
4 | 1943 | Delaware Power and Light[24] | Eastern Shore Public Service Company | 0.016 | 0.282 |
5 | 1948 | Burlington Mills[25][26] | May McEwen Kaiser | 0.014 | 0.178 |
1950s
[edit]Top 10 M&A deals worldwide by value from 1950 to 1959:
Rank | Year | Purchaser | Purchased | Transaction value (in billions USD) | [1] Inflation adjusted (in billions USD) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1959 | General Telephone[27] | Sylvania Electric Products | 1.8 | 18.8 |
2 | 1957 | Armco[28] | National Supply Company | 0.768 | 8.3 |
3 | 1957 | American Can Company[29] | Marathon Corporation | 0.717 | 7.8 |
4 | 1955 | Monsanto[30] | Lion Oil | 0.550 | 6.3 |
5 | 1956 | Continental Can Company[31] | Robert Gair Company | 0.549 | 6.2 |
6 | 1954 | Olin Industries[32] | Mathieson Chemical | 0.500 | 5.7 |
7 | 1955 | Sunray Oil Corporation[33] | Mid-Continent Petroleum Corporation | 0.486 | 5.5 |
8 | 1955 | Sperry Corporation[34] | Remington Rand | 0.466 | 5.3 |
9 | 1953 | Gulf Oil[35] | Warren Petroleum Corporation | 0.420 | 4.8 |
10 | 1954 | Hudson Motor Car Company[36] | Nash-Kelvinator | 0.355 | 4 |
1960s
[edit]Top 10 M&A deals worldwide by value from 1960 to 1969:
Rank | Year | Purchaser | Purchased | Transaction value (in billions USD) | [1] Inflation adjusted (in billions USD) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1969 | Atlantic Richfield[37] | Sinclair Oil Corporation | 3.7 | 30.7 |
2 | 1965 | Union Oil[38] | Pure Oil | 1.5 | 14.5 |
3 | 1968 | Hunt-Wesson[39] | Canada Dry McCall Corporation | 1.0 | 8.8 |
4 | 1969 | Xerox Corporation[25][40] | Scientific Data Systems | 0.925 | 7.7 |
5 | 1967 | Rockwell-Standard[41] | North American Aviation | 0.922 | 8.4 |
6 | 1968 | Sun Oil[25][42] | Sunray DX Oil Company | 0.763 | 6.7 |
7 | 1965 | Continental Oil Company[43] | Consolidation Coal | 0.620 | 6 |
8 | 1961 | American-Marietta Corporation[44] | Glenn L. Martin Company | 0.600 | 6.1 |
9 | 1968 | Control Data Corporation[45] | Commercial Credit Company | 0.582 | 5.1 |
10 | 1967 | Studebaker Corporation[46] | Worthington Corporation | 0.550 | 5 |
1970s
[edit]Top 15 M&A deals worldwide by value from 1970 to 1979:
Rank | Year | Purchaser | Purchased | Transaction value (in billions USD) | [1] Inflation adjusted (in billions USD) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1979 | Shell Oil Company[47] | Belridge Oil Company | 3.65 | 15.3 |
2 | 1976 | General Electric[48] | Utah International | 2.17 | 11.6 |
3 | 1979 | RCA[49] | CIT Financial | 1.3 | 5.5 |
4 | 1979 | Exxon[50] | Reliance Electric | 1.2 | 5 |
5 | 1978 | United Technologies[51][52] | Carrier Corporation | 1.0 | 4.7 |
6 | 1979 | Mobil[53] | General Crude Oil | 0.765 | 3.2 |
7 | 1976 | Atlantic Richfield[25][54][55] | Anaconda Copper | 0.760 | 4.1 |
8 | 1978 | R. J. Reynolds Industries[56] | Del Monte Corporation | 0.620 | 2.9 |
9 | 1978 | Johns Manville[25][57] | Olinkraft Inc | 0.585 | 2.7 |
10 | 1977 | Kennecott Copper[25][58] | Carborundum Corporation | 0.567 | 2.9 |
11 | 1978 | Philip Morris[25][59] | Seven-Up Bottling Co | 0.520 | 2.4 |
12 | 1978 | Beatrice Foods[25][60] | Tropicana Products | 0.488 | 2.3 |
13 | 1977 | Unilever[25][61] | National Starch and Chemical | 0.485 | 2.4 |
14 | 1974 | Burmah Oil[25][62] | Signal Oil & Gas | 0.480 | 3 |
15 | 1979 | American Brands[63] | Franklin Life Insurance | 0.465 | 2 |
1980s
[edit]Top 30 M&A deals worldwide by value from 1980 to 1989:
1990s
[edit]Top M&A deals worldwide by value ($20 billion or larger) from 1990 to 1999:[99]
2000s
[edit]Top M&A deals worldwide by value ($20 billion or larger) from 2000 to 2009:[99]
2010s
[edit]Top M&A deals worldwide by value ($20 billion or larger) from 2010 to 2019: