JPMorgan ramps up hiring across Europe amid rising investor confidence, says it has ‘capital to deploy’
JPMorgan Chase & Co. plans to expand its deal-making team across Europe as the Wall Street giant expects mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity to rise in 2026, setting the stage for a strong year for investment banking.
“We’re hiring in virtually every country in the region,” said Filippo Gori, JPMorgan’s co-head of global banking. BloombergHe added that the bank “has capital to distribute, what matters is where this capital is best distributed.”
The executive said customers appeared optimistic at meetings held across Europe in the first weeks of the year. Investors in Southern Europe are particularly confident as growth has improved after years of post-financial crisis adjustment and restructuring.
His comments come as European bank executives worry that U.S. lenders could deploy additional resources to the continent following a wave of deregulation at home; these moves could further strengthen their long-standing dominance.
2026 could be ‘one of the best years’ for mergers and acquisitions
The company also expects this year to be one of its best years ever for backlogs of mergers and acquisitions due to low interest rates, stable credit conditions and deferred transactions.
“It could be one of the best years ever in terms of mergers and acquisitions globally and in Europe,” he told the Gori news agency. “Easing interest rate pressure, tight credit spreads and readily available financing are key ingredients to deal-making and help narrow valuation gaps between buyers and sellers.”
This week, JPMorgan reported fourth-quarter earnings that included lower-than-expected investment banking revenue. Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Barnum attributed the decline in part to the postponement of some transactions to 2026.
Increase in merger and acquisition activities
M&A activity surged last year after a prolonged slowdown as years of high interest rates and disagreements over valuations had previously hindered deal-making.
But about $903 billion worth of deals were completed in Europe last year, up nearly 9% from 2024, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. But that volume is still short of the more than $1 trillion the region cleared in 2021 and in the years leading up to the pandemic.
Technology, energy, financial services, fintech and infrastructure are expected to remain active sectors for mergers and acquisitions, along with a steady flow of deals in the middle market. The deal flow continues in both directions: European companies pursuing growth in the U.S. and American firms investing across Europe, the manager said.
But inflation and geopolitical tensions could still disrupt a deal, especially if global tensions increase costs. Productivity gains from AI may also take longer than expected to materialize, causing operations to slow down. Additional risks could come from the end of an unusually long and positive credit cycle, the manager said Bloomberg.
