Webber Wentzel and Linklaters top Africa/Middle East charts; 20% rise in Asia deal activity boosts confidence

South African practice Webber Wentzel and Linklaters have topped the rankings by deal volume and value respectively in the Middle East and Africa after deals increased 6.3% last year.

While both deal value and volume are up on 2009 figures, with 302 deals worth $49.4bn (£31bn) in 2010 compared to 284 deals worth $32.2bn (£20bn) the previous year, both fall far short of pre-recession figures, according to the latest Mergermarket statistics.

Over the period Webber Wentzel advised on 16 deals worth a combined $9.7bn (£6.1bn) to top the volume table, alongside fellow South African firms Werksmans and DLA Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyer in second and third respectively.

By value, UK firms took the top three places with Linklaters, which topped the value table for the region, advising on $18.1bn (£11.4bn)-worth of deals over the period. The magic circle law firm was followed by Allen & Overy (with 11 deals worth a total $17.4bn (£11bn)) and Herbert Smith and allies Gleiss Lutz and Stibbe in third (with eight deals worth $15.7bn (£9.9bn)).

However, Linklaters regional senior partner Ewan Cameron cautioned: "The overall volume of activity in both 2009 and 2010 has not been that high and the M&A market has suffered. The regional market is mainly made up of outbound M&A deals and the recession has severely dampened this activity. There are a lot more deals in the market already this year, so it's just a question of whether these are followed through."

Meanwhile, activity in the Asia-Pacific region has continued to increase, ending the year on a total of 2,179 deals worth $396.5bn (£250bn), up 20% by volume on the previous year.

Baker & McKenzie completed the largest number of deals with a total of 91, placing the firm significantly ahead of second-ranked Freehills, which posted a total deal count of 71.

Freehills also performed well by value, totaling $69.3bn (£43.7bn) worth of deals, placing it second behind Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, which carried out 44 deals worth a combined total of $74.5bn (£47bn).

Bakers global M&A head Tim Gee said: "Asia is where the growth markets are, and they remain attractive for inward investment by Western companies. The biggest growth area, though, is in outbound M&A activity and, in particular, intra-regional M&A."

Freshfields Asia managing partner Robert Ashworth (pictured) added: "The general feeling in the market is that Asia recovered from the recession much faster than the rest of the world and with China being such a powerful engine, this led to a high level of activity."