National law firm Shakespeare Martineau’s Bristol corporate and banking team notched up a best-ever £259m-worth of deals last year, supporting a record-breaking £6.6bn across the whole of the UK.
Among the team’s notable transactions in the region was supporting specialist lender Black & White Bridging to secure a new funding line worth £100m. 
Nationally, sector deal highlights included technology and healthcare, as well around £1bn-worth of deals in the energy sector. The single largest deal came in at £2.9bn for an undisclosed fund manager.
The team is made up of experts in mergers and acquisitions (M&A), fast-growth businesses, investment funds and finance.
Shakespeare Martineau expanded its reach into the South West as a result of its 2022 merger with Bristol-headquartered GL Law. Its office in the city is now one of 12 across the UK.
Bristol corporate partner Paul Hardman, pictured, said 2024 had been a busy year for the team after a weaker 2023. 
“A total deal value of £259m beats all previous records, even allowing for our super deal, the £100m funding line for Black & White Bridging,” he added.
“We are grateful to our existing clients and referral sources for a good mixture of M&A and MBO (management buy-out) work, as well as tax-driven re-structuring, with work coming to us across the South West.”
He said 2025 was promising to be an even busier year, with notable inquiries from Chinese investors into the South West.
Shakespeare Martineau partner and head of corporate Michael Stace, pictured, said: “Despite deal volumes declining globally, our team has seen growth in transaction numbers and size driven in part by the investments we have made in the team over the past 12-18 months.
“The mid-market was reasonably buoyant in 2024 with certain sectors – such as technology, healthcare, energy and business services – being particularly active. 
“Naturally, the Autumn Budget sped up a number of transactions in the second half of the year, while others held off, showing caution in their approach.
“In 2025, I’m expecting to see continued consolidation in the healthcare sector, more deals in technology and AI in particular, and increasing activity in the green energy space.
“While the market isn’t brimming with confidence, our deal pipeline is stronger than it was in January 2024 and we’ve continued to invest in our team so I’m feeling optimistic about the new year.”
Shakespeare Martineau is part of the Ampa group of businesses, which employs more than 1,400 people in total and also includes consumer law firm Lime Solicitors, planning consultancy Marrons Planning, uninsured loss recovery experts Corclaim and cyber security consultancy CSS Assure.
