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Mergers and Acquisitions - M&A
A general term used to refer to the consolidation of companies. A merger is a combination of two companies to form a new company while an acquisition is the purchasing of one company by another with no new company being formed.
Investopedia Commentary
An example of a major merger is the merging of JDS Fitel Inc and Uniphase Corp in 1999 to form JDS Uniphase. An example of a major acquisition is Manulife Financial Corporation's 2004 acquisition of John Hancock Financial Services Inc.
The term M&A is also refers to the department at financial institutions that deals with mergers and acquisitions.
Related Links
The Basics of Mergers and Acquisitions
The Wacky World of M&As
See also: Acquisition, Acquisition Premium, Consolidate, Merger, Takeover, Target Firm
Also spelled: M & AM&A
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Mergers and acquisitions
To learn more about Mergers and acquisitions visit Britannica.com
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