‘Centre of gravity’ of European M&A market shifting out of UK – FTI Consulting

The “centre of gravity” in the European M&A market is shifting, with the UK and Ireland’s total of 219 deals in 2025 marking a 23% year-on-year decline.

This is according to the latest European Insurance M&A Barometer from FTI Consulting, released 12 March 2026, which revealed that 789 European M&A deals were completed in 2025, up from 694 the year before.

And while UK and Ireland deals declined, there was a 14% growth in deals seen across Europe at large.

Despite the momentum swing, the UK and Ireland remained the most active market for M&A, accounting for just shy of 28% of all European activity.

Outside of the UK, the so-called “DACH” regions of Germany, Austria and Switzerland saw the most activity, recording a combined total of 143 completions in 2025.

Jeremy Riley, senior advisor at FTI Consulting, explained: “As the UK and Irish markets reach a point of high saturation, the centre of gravity for European insurance M&A has decisively shifted toward continental Europe as a whole. While the UK still saw 219 transactions in 2025, this represented a [drop] in total deals – a clear sign of the scarcity of independent and scalable targets.

“In contrast, continental Europe has entered a period of more hyper-activity. Deal volumes in Italy more than doubled to 68, while Iberia and the DACH region reached 141 and 143 transactions respectively.

“This ‘second wave’ of consolidation is characterised by the emergence of regional champions in previously fragmented markets, such as Benelux and Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) regions, which recorded a combined 142 deals.”

UK broker deals falter

The slump in deals in the UK and Ireland was largely driven by a marked drop in M&A activity in the broker market, which saw total deals fall from 230 in 2024 to just 155 in 2025 – a decrease of 32%.

In contrast, deals for carriers climbed from 25 to 33 between years, while deals for service providers marginally grew from 29 to 31.

Deals conducted directly by private equity companies remained largely stable, while private equity deals executed through a portfolio company dropped considerably from 158 to 108. Strategic buyers also decreased from 102 to 84 between years.

FTI Consulting explained that the drop in overall deals reflected a “gradual normalisation following several years of exceptionally high activity”, while the drop in broker deals indicated “growing market saturation, a reduced number of scaled independent targets and more selective capital deployment”.

Riley concluded: “2025 marked a historic high for European insurance M&A, with transaction volumes reaching record levels and maintaining a relentless upward trajectory.

“Looking ahead to 2026, FTI Consulting anticipates that deal activity will accelerate for carriers, brokers and MGAs.

“Differentiation will be the critical factor – the winners will be defined by those with the ability to seamlessly integrate diverse platforms and deliver revenue and cost synergies, moving beyond simple consolidation to create truly unified businesses.”