Mergers and acquisitions worldwide delivered steady results in the opening quarter of 2026, with PitchBook estimating total deal value at $1.6 trillion. According to the insights from the researchers, this figure represents an 8.8 percent quarter-over-quarter gain and a striking 50.6 percent year-over-year surge, establishing a fresh quarterly benchmark.
PitchBook also indicated that transaction volume climbed to 13,877 deals, advancing 18.3 percent annually and maintaining near-record activity levels.
PitchBook pointed out that North America dominated the landscape, generating $1,022.2 billion in deal value—an all-time high that rose 22.8 percent sequentially and 60.2 percent from the prior year.
The region completed 5,539 transactions, up 19.2 percent year-over-year.
A single outsized transaction, the $250 billion related-party acquisition of xAI by SpaceX, heavily…
