EMC’s Regional Corporate Finance Update | May 2026

May 2026

Welcome to our corporate finance review for May 2026. After the flurry of deal announcements seen at the start of April, May has been a more measured month with volumes settling back to a more typical pace, with 72 deals reported in the South-East.

The month saw the UK Commercial Payments Bill introduced in the House of Lords which aims to introduce caps to payments terms for large businesses. The reforms include a clear 60 day cap on payment terms on all large firms paying small suppliers as well as mandatory interest on late payments set at 8% over base rate. It would be welcome news for those businesses who rely heavily on terms dictated by large key customers causing cash forecasting and management challenges. These late payments are estimated to cost the UK economy £11 billion each year.

An eye-catching national deal saw Intertek indicate it is minded to recommend a £9.4bn takeover offer from Swedish private equity firm EQT, following several rejected approaches, in what would be one of the largest UK private equity transactions on record.

In the South East, London IFA Advies acquired St Andrews Financial, a boutique advice firm with around £200 million under management as consolidation in the financial planning sector continues. In the recruitment sector we saw Stanton House acquire Sussex-based Grafton Banks Finance.

We were also pleased to announce our role advising on the acquisition of Donaldson Dunstall by Stephen Rimmer LLP, bringing together two well-established South Coast law firms to create a combined practice of over 130 people across four offices. Consolidation throughout the professional services sector shows no signs of slowing down.