John Kay on large company M&A in the FT:
“I once thought that however thin the public arguments for large corporate transactions, there was probably some serious analysis going on behind the scenes. Just as I once thought that whatever nonsense politicians might talk on public platforms, more substantive discussion took place when they retired to their offices.
But closer acquaintance with business and politics dispelled both illusions. What you see and hear is more or less what there is. When I was sometimes employed to explain the economic rationale for a corporate transaction, I discovered that it was rarely useful to ask the principals why they were doing it. Usually you just heard those familiar clichés. Sometimes you got closer to the truth, sniffed the testosterone, glimpsed the inflated egos.
And, of course, observed the fees earned by the cheerleaders.”
See also: Blair tried to sort out Glensore / Xstrata farrago
Rothschild throws toys as Bumi shambles escalates - BBC News
BAE and EADS’ pipe-dream M&A deal extinguished – The Guardian
