Dealmakers said that Joe Biden’s projected win of the U.S. presidency and the Republican Party potentially retaining control of the U.S. Senate could drive a pickup in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) that took a hit amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Reuters reported. Bankers and lawyers who advise companies on M&A said the outcome, if confirmed, was the best possible for providing the stable economic and regulatory environment that dealmaking needs. They expect that Biden, the Democratic Party candidate, would be more predictable in governing than Republican President Donald Trump, and that a Republican-controlled U.S. Senate would restrain Biden’s most interventionist policies. "This dynamic can be quite conducive to doing deals, because it provides stability," said Peter Orszag, who served in the White House under President Barack Obama and now heads the financial advisory arm of investment bank Lazard Ltd. “The only caveat is that there is less chance of another big round of stimulus, which would help the macroeconomic outlook, than if Democrats had taken the Senate,” Orszag added. All major U.S. TV networks projected Biden would win the presidency on Saturday, though Trump vowed to continue to challenge the outcome in the courts. Two runoff U.S. Senate races in Georgia, which will decide which party will control the upper chamber of Congress, will take place on Jan. 5, with Republicans favored to retain control based on this week’s tally.
