Investing in Southern Europe: M&A in Switzerland in H1 2026

Key takeaways

• Swiss assets were targeted in 221 M&A deals worth €16bn in H1 2026, the third-largest market in Southern Europe
• Three of the 10 largest deals in Southern Europe involved Swiss targets, led by Versigent and Terra Quantum
• Foreign bidders accounted for 57% of Swiss deals by volume and 89% by value (€14.3bn)
• Across the six countries, deal value rose 37% to €147.7bn while volume fell 6% to 1,858 deals

Investing in Southern Europe is the new Forvis Mazars report prepared in association with Mergermarket. It examines M&A activity across Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, Portugal and Greece in the first half of 2026, at regional, national and sector level.

The Investing in Southern Europe report at a glance

Southern Europe stands out as a beacon of opportunity for M&A in EMEA. While diverse in terms of targets, the region possesses distinctive unifying characteristics, which are proving extremely attractive to strategics and sponsors alike:

• A robust and often undervalued mid-market that is ripe for consolidation and generates reliable deal flow, even in times of economic stress
• A large number of family-owned businesses and an abundant supply of succession-driven assets
• Valuation multiples that are competitive versus Northern Europe and the US

Key findings for the region in H1 2026:

• €147.7bn: the overall value of deals in Southern Europe, up 37% compared to the same period in 2025
• 1,858 deals: the number of M&A transactions in the region, a 6% decline relative to H1 2025
• 41%: share of total Southern European M&A value generated by bidders from outside the region, equivalent to €61.2bn
• €48bn: private equity deal value across 338 PE transactions, with deal value up 23% YoY
• 330 deals: industrials and chemicals, the busiest sector by volume, while financial services led by value with €43.5bn

Southern Europe M&A by country, H1 2025 vs H1 2026

Source: Mergermarket, Investing in Southern Europe report

M&A in Switzerland in H1 2026: the headline figures

Switzerland was the region’s third-largest deal market in H1 2026. Swiss assets were targeted in 221 announced deals (down 4% relative to H1 2025) worth a combined €16bn (a decline of 32%). Just over 17% of transactions in H1 2026 were buyouts, marginally ahead of Spain and the highest share for any country in Southern Europe.

While overall levels of dealmaking were subdued versus H1 2025, Switzerland nevertheless generated a clutch of larger transactions. These included three of the 10 largest announced in Southern Europe in H1, involving bidders from the US (two deals) and the UK (one deal). The deals seen in H1 2026 show the depth of the Swiss M&A market, embracing everything from automotive and technology, to pharma, energy and financial services.

The strong franc raises the entry price for international acquirers, but Switzerland’s wealth of resilient, high-quality assets ensures that this small, open economy remains a key feature in regional M&A. Turkey and Switzerland are the only Southern European countries that lie outside the euro area.

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• 221M&A deals targeting Swiss assets in H1 2026
• 16Total disclosed deal value in Switzerland
• 89Share of Swiss deal value from foreign bidders

Inbound M&A: foreign bidders behind 89% of Swiss deal value

Inbound M&A is structurally significant for Switzerland, with foreign bidders accounting for 57% of deals by volume (126 transactions) and 89% by value (€14.3bn) in H1 2026. The three Swiss deals in the regional top 10 all involved overseas bidders, from the US (two deals) and the UK (one deal).

The largest M&A deals in Switzerland in H1 2026

Swiss targets appear in the report’s regional top 10 and in the top-10 tables for technology, media and telecoms, industrials and chemicals, pharma, medical and biotech, financial services and consumer.

Source: Mergermarket, Investing in Southern Europe report, deal tables

In the largest Swiss deal, worth €3.2bn, Aptiv, a US automotive and industrial technology company whose corporate headquarters are in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, spun off its electrical distribution systems business into a new company called Versigent, which will be publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange.

The second-largest deal of H1 was the merger of Switzerland-based deep-tech and quantum computing firm Terra Quantum with UK-based Axiom Intelligence Acquisition Corp 1, a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The deal, worth just over €3bn, underlines the clamour for cybersecurity and AI-related assets, as well as the ability of Swiss deep-tech firms to access international capital. Following the completion of the merger with Nasdaq-listed Axiom, Terra Quantum is expected to list on the index in the latter half of 2026.

The two largest Swiss pharma deals, both inbound buyouts, were the €1.88bn divestment by Lonza Group of its capsules and health ingredients business to US-based Lone Star, with Lonza retaining a 40% equity position, and the €1.86bn acquisition of an 80% stake in the animal nutrition and health business of DSM-Firmenich by UK-based CVC Advisers, with DSM retaining a 20% stake.

Swiss M&A by sector: technology and life sciences lead

Technology, media and telecoms

Total deal value in Southern Europe’s TMT sector soared to €28.4bn in H1 2026, second only to financial services. Switzerland generated the region’s second-largest TMT deal, the Terra Quantum merger. Swiss assets were the targets of two other top-10 TMT deals, the largest of which was a €200m funding round by digital health specialist Oviva. Also in top-10 territory was a €194m fundraising by Swiss semiconductor design company, Kandou Bus. All three of Switzerland’s largest TMT deals feature a strong AI component.

While Switzerland trails both Italy and Spain in terms of TMT volume, tech is nevertheless a dominant feature of Switzerland’s M&A market and accounts for more than a fifth of domestic dealmaking, the highest share for any country in Southern Europe.

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Pharma, medical and biotech

Pharma, medical and biotech (PMB) was the third-largest sector in Southern Europe by value in H1 2026, with 125 transactions worth €19.4bn. Although Switzerland is not the largest M&A market by volume as far as PMB is concerned, that accolade typically goes to Italy, albeit by a slim margin, it generates consistently high value. 

Indeed, the aggregate value of Swiss PMB deals over the past five years is almost three times that of Italy on a broadly similar number of deals. Switzerland maintained its stellar performance in H1, with six of the region’s 10 largest pharma deals.

By volume, TMT is consistently the most active sector in Switzerland, notes Antonio Rubino, Partner at Forvis Mazars in Switzerland. By value, pharmaceuticals and life sciences dominates, reflecting the weight of Switzerland’s global champions and their continued appetite for pipeline-driven acquisitions.

Beyond big pharma, mid-market PMB is also thriving in Switzerland. Medtech, healthcare services and biotech continue to attract both strategic and financial buyers, observes Rubino.

Outlook: 52 Swiss companies for sale tracked in H1 2026

Mergermarket’s heat chart tracks “companies for sale” stories related to assets in Southern Europe. Between 1 January and 30 June 2026, it recorded 608 stories across the region, 52 of them relating to Swiss companies.

Source: Mergermarket, Investing in Southern Europe report

Across the region, all the elements are in place for an M&A uptick in Southern Europe in the latter part of 2026:

• Financing conditions remain broadly favourable
• The pipeline of succession-driven sales remains strong
• Corporates are actively reshaping their portfolios
• Pressure for PE exits continues to rise

Conversely, two factors could slow deal flow:

• Further monetary tightening by the European Central Bank risks widening valuation gaps between buyers and sellers, potentially slowing deal flow and putting the brakes on leveraged transactions
• Trade tariffs could weigh on export-linked valuations

FAQ: M&A in Switzerland in H1 2026