M&A in Portugal hits €315M in 2025: key players and trends
In the first two months of 2025, Portugal’s M&A transactional market recorded 68 deals, totaling €315 million, according to the latest TTR Data report. Of these, 32% disclosed their values. These figures represent a 41% drop in transaction volume compared to the same period in 2024 and an 84.5% decrease in capital raised. The real estate sector has been the most active this year, with 13 transactions, followed by travel, hospitality, and leisure (10 deals) and the Internet, software & IT services sector (8 deals). Among the top dealers of the year so far, Morais Leitão, Uría Menéndez and Cuatrecasas stand out.
Cross-border activity
In terms of cross-border transactions, Spain and Brazil were the top investors in Portugal during the period, with 11 and 4 transactions, respectively. Meanwhile, Portuguese companies primarily targeted Spain and the United Kingdom, with 6 and 2 transactions, respectively. Inbound acquisitions (foreign companies acquiring Portugal-based targets) amounted to €43.34 million, while outbound acquisitions (Portugal-based companies acquiring targets abroad) totaled €64 million.
Private equity, venture capital, and asset acquisitions
By the end of February 2025, six private equity deals had been recorded, totaling €10 million. Venture capital saw 10 funding rounds, amounting to €73 million, marking a 68% decrease in capital raised. In the asset acquisitions segment, 21 deals were registered, totaling €69 million, representing a 91.5% drop in total value compared to the same period last year.
Top deal of the month
TTR Data highlighted the €5.3 million capital injection received by proptech startup Relive Portugal as February’s main deal. Relive Portugal, a company specializing in real estate mediation, raised this capital in a Series A round led by Indico Capital Partners, with participation from Shilling and Bynd. For this deal, Relive Portugal was advised by Morais Leitão’s partner Luís Roquette Geraldes, principal associate Inês Agapito, and trainee Gonçalo Castela.
Legal advisors
The TTR Data report includes legal advisor rankings for M&A, Private Equity, Venture Capital, and Capital Markets as of February 2025. So far this year, Morais Leitão leads the rankings, with 6 transactions totaling €161 million. Uría Menéndez ranks second in deal value, with one transaction totaling €152 million. Cuatrecasas in Portugal also stands out, with 6 transactions totaling €12 million.
The top dealmakers of the first two months of 2025 by total transaction value are Jorge Simões Cortez, Catarina Brito Ferreira, and Gonçalo Fleming (all from Morais Leitão) and Catarina Tavares Loureiro (from Uría Menéndez Portugal), each with a total deal value of €152 million.
The TTR Data rankings include transactions announced between January 1 and February 28, 2025.
