India Deal Value Jumps 18% in 2025 as Investors Favour Bigger Bets

India’s total deal value rose 18% year-on-year to $123.8 billion in 2025, even as overall deal volumes fell 3%, indicating a clear shift toward fewer but larger transactions, according to EY’s latest M&A Transactions Report.

The report said investors increasingly concentrated capital in high-value assets across infrastructure, financial services and cross-border transactions, favouring scale, quality and long-term strategic relevance over a higher number of smaller deals.

“Investors are not stepping away from India; they are becoming more selective. Instead of pursuing multiple smaller opportunities, they focused on deals that offered long-term relevance at valuations that made sense,” said Amit Khandelwal, Managing Partner, Strategy and Transactions, EY India and Africa region.

Infrastructure emerged as the largest sector by value, with transactions worth $24.6 billion in 2025, up 35% from $18.2 billion a year earlier, despite an 18% decline in volumes. EY attributed the rise to continued government capital expenditure, policy support and access to long-term financing.

The industrial and automotive sectors recorded the fastest growth in deal value, rising 105% year-on-year, while deal volumes increased 4%. Investor interest remained strong in engineered products, auto components, precision manufacturing and electronics.

Cross-border M&A activity also strengthened during the year. Although the number of such deals fell 20%, their combined value surged 155% to $33.2 billion. Inbound transactions rose as global companies sought Indian assets in infrastructure, technology and industrial sectors, while outbound deal value increased to $13.7 billion from $5.1 billion in 2024.

Private equity investments climbed 8% to $60.7 billion in 2025, while deal volumes rose 9% to 1,475 transactions. According to the report, investors focused on buyouts, growth investments and platform-led partnerships, favouring companies with stronger cash flows and clearer profitability paths.

EY said geopolitical uncertainty, currency volatility, supply-chain disruptions and a prolonged energy crisis led to longer deal-closing timelines and deeper due diligence globally. However, India continued to attract investor interest due to policy stability and macroeconomic growth prospects.

For 2026, the report expects deal activity to remain resilient, supported by public investment in infrastructure, biopharma and semiconductors, alongside improving regulatory certainty and recent trade agreements.