Investment banks play a crucial role in advising and facilitating mergers, acquisitions, IPOs, bond issuances, and other financial transactions. Their reputation and market share in various sectors are closely tracked via investment banking league tables. In 2020, despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, investment banking remained robust across most industries and major firms like Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, and Morgan Stanley continued to dominate. Morgan Stanley took the top spot in global M&A advisory and global equity capital markets, reflecting its strong positioning in strategic advisory and equity underwriting. Meanwhile, JP Morgan led the debt capital markets league tables, underlining its debt financing capabilities. The technology, media and healthcare sectors saw vibrant deal activities, offering opportunities for investment banks to consolidate relationships with high-growth companies. As the investment banking industry evolves, league tables provide timely snapshots of bank rankings across products, regions and industries.
Morgan Stanley leads global M&A league tables
According to Refinitiv, Morgan Stanley topped the 2020 global M&A advisory league tables, having advised on $919 billion worth of deals. This included several high-profile transactions like AstraZeneca’s acquisition of Alexion Pharmaceuticals for $39 billion. Morgan Stanley also advised on Nvidia’s acquisition of Arm Holdings and Uber’s acquisition of Postmates. Its success highlights the bank’s strong M&A franchise and elite positioning in offering strategic advice to corporate clients. Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan took second and third place in the global M&A league tables, underlining the dominance of American investment banks. Meanwhile, Chinese investment bank China International Capital Corporation broke into the top 10, reflecting China’s growing deal-making activities.
Morgan Stanley leads global equity capital markets
Morgan Stanley topped the 2020 global equity capital markets league tables, according to Refinitiv data, having raised $90.1 billion across IPOs and follow-on offerings. The bank led high-profile IPOs like Snowflake, Royalty Pharma and DoorDash. Its success highlights its strong equity underwriting capabilities. Morgan Stanley also has the #1 position in block trading, secondary offerings, and equity-linked deals. Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan rounded up the top three positions in global ECM league tables. The strong performance of these elite American investment banks underlines Wall Street’s dominance in global capital markets.
JP Morgan leads global debt capital markets
JP Morgan claimed the top spot in the 2020 global debt capital markets league tables, according to Refinitiv. It raised $582 billion across investment-grade and high-yield bond issuances, leveraged loans, and other debt offerings. JP Morgan has held the #1 position in global debt capital markets for several years, underlining its unmatched client connectivity and distribution power in debt financing. It has strong relationships with top-tier corporations and institutional investors worldwide. Goldman Sachs and Bank of America took second and third place among global debt underwriters. The league tables highlight the debt financing strength of American investment banks.
Technology and healthcare drive vibrant deal environment
Despite the pandemic, 2020 saw active M&A and capital markets activities in sectors like technology, media, and healthcare. Large tech deals included Nvidia’s acquisition of Arm and Salesforce’s acquisition of Slack. Major healthcare deals included AstraZeneca-Alexion and Teladoc-Livongo mergers. The technology and biopharma sectors offered lucrative deal opportunities for investment banks. The active environment enabled banks to foster key client relationships with high-growth tech and biotech companies. Meanwhile, traditional industries like energy and real estate were muted amid economic uncertainties. Overall, the league tables underscored the client sector strengths and product capabilities of top investment banks like Morgan Stanley, Goldman, and JP Morgan.
In 2020, Morgan Stanley led global M&A and equity capital markets league tables while JP Morgan topped debt capital markets rankings. The performance highlights the differentiated strengths of top investment banks across products and regions. Despite the pandemic, sectors like technology, media and healthcare offered vibrant activities, enabling investment banks to cement ties with leading companies.