Private Equity, Banking M&A Boom Goes On
By: Greg Levine | Features Editor
"You can't imagine" the extent of the private-equity boom, says Fred Price, managing partner and principal at Sandler O'Neill. Price joined a special edition of "Power Lunch: Live at the Links" to talk about private equity and banking mergers -- neither of which shows any signs of slowing.
At the "UBS 17th Hole Challenge" in Rockefeller Plaza Thursday, Price told CNBC's Bill Griffeth that banking M&A hasn't decreased. What has slowed, he said, is the sector's equity appreciation. He noted that in the first quarter, "S&P and Nasdaq financials were down basically 5%" -- due to margin pressures and "lingering concern about credit." But, he said, these stimuli ended up creating an "even more active M&A environment."
"In the financial services sector, M&A is going to stay high," he said.
Price said Sandler has increased its "significant" business serving private-equity firms: "You can't imagine the activity going on" in the private realm, he said. "I don't think there's any slowdown in private equity growth -- it's got quite a run ahead," Price declared.
