There has been an increase in both the number and size of Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) in all sectors of Indian economy. The financial sector in India is highly fragmented and is characterized by a large number of small banks and financial institutions. It needs size and scale to grow and compete internationally. Consolidation is the ideal way to achieve this. The trends in M&As in this sector would, therefore, be of special interest to economists, researchers and policy makers. Keeping in mind, the dearth of literature on the subject, the study intends to capture the trends and pattern of M&Ass in some sectors of Indian economy with special reference to the financial sector. It has been observed that there has been a rising number of M&As in this sector, especially so after the Narasimhan Committee II recommendations on consolidation in the banking sector were reported. A newly constructed database is used to identify the kind of deals (horizontal or vertical) and nature of companies (banks, financial institutions or non bank financial companies) involved.

There has been an increase in the number and size of Merger and Acquisition (M&A) transactions in all sectors of the economy, specifically the financial services sector. Deregulation and advances in technology are widely held as important factors that have ended the distinction between banks and financial intermediaries and this has further led to an unparalleled rise in number of M&A in financial companies across the globe. Besides, to face the ever-increasing competitive pressure these companies may look for M&A as a means to obtain scale economies and efficiency gains.

Merger and amalgamation are forms of unifying two or more companies. The shareholder of each company would become the shareholders of the company which is undertaking the activity. While merger means forming a new entity, which is a blend of existing entities, acquisition refers to buying out another company and taking it into the hands of the acquiring company.

Business Strategy Journal, Mergers and Acquisitions, Financial Sectors, Indian Economy, Banking Sectors, Financial Companies, Policy Implications, Insurance Companies, Regional Rural Banks, Commercial Banks,, Non-Bank Financial Companies, NBFCs, Financial Sector Reforms, Universal Banks.