Real Estate Leads Portuguese M&A Market with 63 Deals Through August
Portugal’s transactional market recorded 374 mergers and acquisitions from January to August 2025, an 11% decrease in volume compared to the same period in the previous year. The total value of these operations reached €5.5 billion, a 39% reduction in mobilized capital, according to a report published Monday by TTR Data. The data indicates a general cooling in transactional activity, which the summer months did not reverse.
The report from TTR Data, a leading financial data provider, specified that value disclosures were available for only 40% of the registered transactions. Furthermore, the announced acquisition of Novobanco by the French banking group BPCE has not yet been included in the aggregate statistics, as the deal is currently under a memorandum of understanding. The exclusion of this major banking transaction suggests the final annual figures could look substantially different.
Despite the overall market decline, the real estate sector distinguished itself as the most active area of investment. A total of 63 transactions were completed in the property sector during the first eight months of the year. This figure places real estate ahead of the second most active sector, Internet, Software & IT Services, which accounted for 41 M&A operations. For the month of August alone, 39 deals were recorded across all sectors, with a combined value of €487.84 million.
Cross-border investment continues to be a significant driver of the Portuguese M&A landscape. Spanish entities were the most prolific investors in Portugal, closing 38 deals, while the United States was the second-largest source of foreign capital with 23 transactions. The data also highlighted a 27% year-over-year increase in the number of acquisitions of Portuguese companies by North American firms. In terms of outbound investment, Spain and the U.S. were also the primary destinations for Portuguese companies.
The private equity and venture capital segments saw a downturn, with 50 private equity transactions representing a 7% fall, and 77 venture capital rounds marking a 24% decrease. The total capital from these investment types amounted to €502 million. In contrast, the asset acquisitions segment moved against the general market trend. It recorded 93 transactions with a total value of €2.6 billion, which represents a 5% growth in the number of operations compared to the prior year.
Analysts at TTR Data identified the completed acquisition of HeiQ AeoniQ by the Portuguese company Altri for €35.5 million as the most significant transaction for the month of August. The legal advisory for this deal was provided by the law firm Garrigues Portugal. This specific transaction highlights ongoing strategic activity in the industrial sector, even as the broader market shows signs of contraction.
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