Mergers and acquisitions facts for kids

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are transactions in which the ownership of companies, other business organizations, or their operating units are transferred or united with other entities.

History

A famous merger happened in 1708, between the East India Company and an erstwhile competitor to take control of the trade in India and its surrounding countries. In 1784, the Italian Monte dei Paschi and Monte Pio banks were merged together as the Monti Reuniti. In 1821, the Hudson's Bay Company merged with it's competitor North West Company.

At present mergers and acquisitions between companies happen very commonly and there are separate private companies to help other companies enter into mergers like MergersCorp, BusinessBrokers and LinkBusiness.

Images for kids

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  Replica of an East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company/United East India Company (VOC). A pioneering early model of the public company and multinational corporation in its modern sense, the VOC was formed in 1602 from a government-directed consolidation/amalgamation of several competing Dutch trading companies (the so-called voorcompagnieën). It was possibly in fact the first recorded major consolidation and is generally one of the most successful mergers (in particular amalgamations) in the history of business.

See also

In Spanish: Fusiones y adquisiciones para niños