Our annual M&A Outlook offers a highly promising forecast for Ireland's M&A landscape in 2026. The survey, which gathered insights from 150 executives involved in corporate deals, emphasises an optimistic M&A market in 2026.
However, while 77% of respondents plan to pursue M&A opportunities in 2026, this is down slightly from the peak of 84% seen in 2025, reflecting longer-term trends and sustained confidence in dealmaking.
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Primed for another dynamic year
“As we enter 2026, the Irish M&A market appears primed for another dynamic year, underpinned by strong fundamentals and a mature, risk-aware outlook among market participants,” said Mark Collins, Partner, Head of Deal Advisory at KPMG in Ireland.
“We are already seeing a very healthy pipeline for 2026 across a broad range of sectors, particularly in technology, but also in healthcare, energy and infrastructure”, continued Collins.
Dealmakers expect sectors like Technology (35%), Healthcare and Pharmaceuticals (16%), and Energy and Infrastructure (13%) to be the most active in 2026, with Technology now leading in M&A deal value for over a decade.
Financing outlook
Interestingly, a significant majority (86%) of M&A leaders describe financing as either “abundant and readily accessible” or “adequate but with some constraints”. This suggests access to sufficient financing is available in the market with constraints applicable to riskier sector verticals.
According to David O’Kelly, Head of M&A at KPMG: “While confidence has moderated slightly from the buoyant optimism that marked the start of 2025, our survey shows sentiment remains resilient. Following a year of global market shocks and geopolitical uncertainty, dealmakers are approaching 2026 with a pragmatic mindset – alert to shifting dynamics but ready to act.”
Crucial due diligence and key success factors
Due diligence remains a key focus for 2026, with increased activity expected across most workstreams. The top three forms of due diligence include finance (86%), legal and regulatory (77%), and commercial (72%).
This trend underscores buyers' growing emphasis on identifying potential risks and gaining a comprehensive view of a target's health before completion. In practice, this has contributed to longer deal timelines, with much of the additional time dedicated to extended diligence activity.
Finally, M&A leaders project more sophisticated sell side preparation as the key enabler of dealmaking in 2026, (29%) rising from third place last year to the top spot. In contrast, speedy access to financing has fallen to the least important factor (down from second in 2025) as longer deal timelines provide buyers more time to secure funding.
Get in touch
If you have any queries on the topics raised in this year's M&A Outlook report, please get in touch with our Deal Advisory team.
We'd be delighted to hear from you.