Which countries are most attractive for M&A? The 2025 global rankings explained

The United States and Singapore have again topped the annual global league table of M&A attractiveness, with the US retaining first place for a 15th consecutive year and Singapore holding second, according to the latest M&A Attractiveness Index Scores (MAAIS) published by the Mergers and Acquisitions Research Centre (MARC) at Bayes Business School.

Interactive map below

The report, now in its 15th edition, ranks 148 countries on their capacity to attract and sustain domestic and inbound M&A activity. Canada, Germany and Australia complete the top five. Spain is the standout mover, rising seven places to enter the top ten at the expense of France.

How the index works

The MAAIS ranks each country against 19 indicators, which are grouped into six categories: Regulatory and Political conditions; Economic and Financial strength; Technological capability; Socio-economic characteristics; Infrastructure and Assets; and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors. These indicators together account for 75 per cent of a country's final score. The remaining 25 per cent is determined by actual deal volumes - the level of domestic and inbound cross-border M&A activity recorded in that year.

The index was developed jointly by practitioners and academics at Bayes Business School, part of City St George's, University of London, and draws on publicly available data updated annually.

BSR has produced an interactive map of the full 148-country rankings, which allows readers to explore each country's score, category strengths and weaknesses, and year-on-year movements:

The top ten

The full top ten for 2025 is as follows:

1. United States
2. Singapore
3. Canada
4. Germany
5. Australia
6. United Kingdom
7. Netherlands
8. South Korea
9. New Zealand
10. Spain

The US leads primarily on the strength of its Infrastructure and Assets category, which reflects the quality and depth of its registered companies, transport networks, ports and financial market infrastructure. Its capital markets are without parallel globally, and domestic deal volumes remain high. Dr Naaguesh Appadu, Senior Research Fellow at the Bayes M&A Research Centre and lead author of the report, described the position in direct terms: "The US sense of exceptionalism continues to have some grounding in reality. While geopolitical risk remains elevated, key indicators such as regulatory quality, institutional strength and market depth have remained broadly stable, continuing to support investor confidence and deal activity."

Singapore holds second place on the back of a predictable regulatory environment, political stability and well-developed financial and physical infrastructure. Its position makes it the most attractive M&A destination in Asia and reflects the city-state's role as the primary gateway for regional and cross-border transactions across the Asia-Pacific region.

Canada, in third, is supported by a stable regulatory environment, strong financial institutions and improving ESG performance. Germany, ranked fourth overall and first among European nations, draws on its industrial base and infrastructure, though the index notes that weaker economic momentum has moderated its relative position. Australia, ranked fifth, has strengthened its position through gains in ESG-related indicators alongside a resilient deal environment.

The UK holds sixth place, one position lower than in the previous year. While the UK scores strongly on Regulatory and Political indicators - reflecting the current deregulatory policy direction - Dr Appadu noted pressures on its overall position: "There are pressures linked to regulatory quality and enduring political instability. Combined with elevated geopolitical risk, this has tempered investor confidence and we can see that in less domestic M&A activity."

The Netherlands rose one place to seventh, underpinned by well-developed financial markets and continued openness to international capital. South Korea slipped two places to eighth despite strong scores in Economic and Financial conditions and Technological capability. New Zealand climbed two places into ninth, with ESG performance and institutional stability cited as drivers. Spain's rise of seven places into tenth position is discussed in detail below.

A consistent pattern across the top ten is that nine of the ten countries score weakest in the Socio-economic category. The primary driver is ageing populations and the associated demographic pressures on future consumer demand and labour supply. South Korea is the exception, with Infrastructure and Assets identified as its leading market challenge.


Spain's rise - and France's exit

Spain's seven-place advance is the most significant movement at the top of the 2025 index. Its improvement is driven by strengthening macroeconomic fundamentals, including firmer GDP growth, easing inflation and improving fiscal credibility. Labour-market resilience and the continued flow of EU recovery funds have reinforced inbound M&A interest, while post-pandemic investment momentum has supported domestic deal activity. France, which Spain displaced from the top ten, slipped due to slowing economic growth, pressure on industrial output and tighter financing conditions.


Diverging fortunes across Europe

Several major European economies fell in the 2025 rankings. Germany, the UK, France and Switzerland all declined, driven by deteriorating economic and financial indicators, increased policy uncertainty and, in most cases, reduced inbound M&A volumes. Germany and France were affected by slowing growth and tighter financing conditions. The UK's decline reflects both subdued domestic deal volumes and continued political uncertainty. Switzerland, while retaining strong scores on institutional quality and infrastructure, was affected by weaker relative performance in economic and financial factors compared with peers.

The Netherlands, Sweden, Belgium, Norway, the Czech Republic and Denmark all retained positions within the top 20. Nordic countries benefited from strong governance standards and ESG credentials, which the report identifies as increasingly relevant for cross-border investors. The Netherlands and Belgium maintained their positions through well-developed financial markets and regulatory stability. Spain and the Czech Republic both improved, the latter supported by competitive cost structures, a skilled industrial workforce and its strategic position within European manufacturing and near-shoring supply chains.

The report's authors identify a widening divergence within Europe: countries combining policy stability, strong ESG credentials and sound economic fundamentals have held or gained ground, while those facing macroeconomic headwinds or political uncertainty have slipped.


Asia: five countries in the global top 20, despite China and India falling

Asia now accounts for five of the world's top 20 M&A destinations: Singapore (2nd), South Korea (8th), Japan (13th), Hong Kong (19th) and Malaysia (20th). Japan's position is supported by the scale and quality of its infrastructure and industrial assets. Hong Kong and Malaysia benefit from relatively high technological development, including strong performance in high-tech exports, innovation activity and patent filings.

However, the two Asian markets that have driven a large share of global economic growth in recent years both lost ground in the rankings. China fell 11 places, with the report attributing the decline primarily to Regulatory and Political factors - specifically the growing impact of geopolitical tensions with key trading partners, tighter regulatory oversight and slower GDP growth. India fell five places, with execution challenges and regulatory frictions cited as the main constraints.

Dr Appadu noted: "In India, execution challenges and regulatory frictions remain key constraints. As global uncertainty rises, investors are increasingly favouring markets that combine growth with institutional stability and deal certainty."

Japan slipped four places to 13th overall, falling out of the top ten for the first time. South Korea's two-place decline is noted despite the country retaining strong fundamentals in both economic and technological categories.


The Gulf and emerging market risers

Qatar is highlighted as a country of particular note. It rose five places over the past year to 32nd position and has gained eight places over five years - the joint-largest five-year gain among countries in the top 50. The improvement reflects sustained economic expansion, increased investment in financial infrastructure and the gradual strengthening of capital market institutions. The MARC report identifies gains in economic and financial indicators - supported by robust public investment, energy-sector revenues and efforts to modernise the country's financial ecosystem - as the primary drivers. Qatar continues to score lower on socio-economic factors, including labour market depth and human capital indicators, which the report suggests could constrain the pace of future gains without further structural reform.

Within the top 50, the largest single-year gains were recorded by Slovenia, which rose 11 places to 44th, Uruguay, which climbed 10 places to 48th, and Slovakia and Mexico, which each rose nine places to 35th and 38th respectively. Thailand rose eight places to 21st, and South Africa rose eight places to 43rd. Uruguay, Slovenia and Slovakia each scored well on ESG indicators. Mexico's improvement was driven by Socio-economic factors, while South Africa and Thailand were lifted by Infrastructure and Assets and Economic and Financial indicators respectively.

The largest single-year declines in the top 50 were recorded by Israel, which fell 13 places, China (-11), Lithuania (-10) and Saudi Arabia (-10). Switzerland, Malaysia, Austria and Ireland each fell five places. Israel and Lithuania's challenges are attributed primarily to Socio-economic factors, while China's decline is linked to Regulatory and Political conditions.


The five-year view

Looking across the full five-year period from 2020 to 2025, Romania leads all countries with a gain of 18 places. Malta has gained 11 places, Uruguay 10, Mexico 9 and Qatar 8. In the top 50, the countries that have lost the most ground over five years are Israel (-12), Saudi Arabia (-10), Iceland (-9), China (-8) and Chile (-8).

Among the top ten nations, the US, Singapore, Canada, Germany, the UK and Spain have all retained their 2020 positions. Australia, the Netherlands and New Zealand have each risen two places over the period, while South Korea has fallen three.


Non-traditional markets: a persistent gap between GDP and deal activity

The share of global M&A activity taking place in what the report terms "non-traditional" markets - countries outside North America, Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan - stood at 34 per cent in 2025, two percentage points higher than the previous year and the highest share since 2020. The long-run data shows this figure has ranged consistently between 30 and 40 per cent since rising from 26 per cent in 2006.

The contrast with economic weight is striking. Non-traditional markets now account for 62 per cent of global GDP. The gap between their share of output and their share of M&A activity has remained wide despite stronger regulatory and policy frameworks developing across many emerging economies. The report attributes this divergence to political volatility, rising protectionism, the conflict in the Middle East and Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine, which have collectively weakened the conditions for cross-border deal activity in ways that stronger institutional frameworks alone have not fully offset.

The report notes that these dynamics have accelerated domestic and inter-regional M&A across many emerging economies, while sustaining cross-border flows between developed and emerging markets. Deal flows increasingly reflect regional realignment, risk rebalancing and strategic diversification.


Regional standings

At the regional level, North America is the most attractive region for M&A by a substantial margin, scoring 88 per cent. Oceania scores 83 per cent and Western Europe 80 per cent. Asia records 72 per cent. Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, and the Middle East each recorded average scores in the mid-60s, with the Middle East and CEE swapping places both year-on-year and compared with 2020. Africa trails with a score of 44 per cent.


Geopolitical risk and ESG as structural themes

Two themes run through the 2025 index and are likely to shape rankings in the years ahead. The first is geopolitical risk. The report notes the broad impact of the Russia-Ukraine war and Middle East conflict on M&A conditions, and Dr Appadu flagged the potential for recent escalation to extend that effect: "Although the impact of the US-Israel-Iran war may not be visible in the report, we expect it to disrupt M&A trends in the short term. Even in a more deregulated environment, ESG and institutional quality remain key drivers of investor confidence, particularly as geopolitical shocks increasingly expose underlying vulnerabilities in global markets."

The second theme is the growing weight of ESG performance in cross-border investment decisions. Australia and New Zealand's improved positions, the resilience of Nordic countries, and the rises of several smaller European and Latin American nations are all linked in part to strong ESG scores. The report identifies this as an increasingly decisive factor as investors seek markets that combine growth potential with institutional reliability.

The MARC M&A Attractiveness Index Scores are published annually by Bayes Business School. The full 148-country rankings, including year-on-year and five-year movements for each nation, can be explored using BSR's interactive country rankings tool embedded above.

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