Merger is 'sign of recovery' (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Calverley-based firm Zenith Provecta in merger

2:17pm Tuesday 31st August 2010 in Business

A deal in which Morgan Stanley Private Equity took a 60 per cent stake in Calverley-based Zenith Provecta, was part of a trend that pointed to a recovery in the regional merger and acquisition market, according to a top business adviser.

Geoff Taylor, Deloitte senior partner for the North East, said he expected to see a resurgence in M&A activity following the Zenith deal.

His comments came as Deloitte reported that revenues in its Leeds and Newcastle operations held up well at £75m, only five per cent down on the previous year.

Mr Taylor said: “Despite a second successive year of extremely challenging markets for Deloitte and our clients, we are emerging from the recession with a very satisfactory performance and our standing in the market enhanced.”