JP Morgan and Houlihan Lokey were the leading financial advisors in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions in North America during the first half (H1) of 2025, in terms of value and volume respectively, according to the latest financial advisor league table published by consulting and data analytics firm GlobalData.
An analysis of GlobalData’s transaction database revealed that JP Morgan ranked first in terms of deal value, advising on transactions totaling $209.4 billion. Meanwhile, Houlihan Lokey led in terms of volume, advising on a total of 93 deals.
Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, commented, “JP Morgan and Houlihan Lokey had already been the top advisors in terms of value and volume in H1 2024, and they successfully retained their respective leadership positions in H1 2025. Houlihan Lokey came very close to reaching triple digits in deal volume during this semester.”
“JP Morgan, for its part, was the only advisor to surpass $200 billion in total transaction value during the period analyzed. It advised on 40 deals valued at over $1 billion, including six mega deals valued at more than $10 billion,” Bose added.
Ranking by Number of Deals:
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2nd Place: JP Morgan – 74 transactions
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3rd Place: Goldman Sachs – 68 transactions
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4th Place: Jefferies – 49 transactions
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5th Place: Piper Sandler – 49 transactions
Ranking by Deal Value:
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2nd Place: Goldman Sachs – $189.3 billion
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3rd Place: Morgan Stanley – $156.3 billion
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4th Place: Citi – $153.7 billion
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5th Place: Evercore – $128.4 billion
Kirkland & Ellis Leads as Legal Advisor in M&A
On the legal side, Kirkland & Ellis was the leading legal advisor for M&A transactions in North America during the same period, both in terms of deal value and volume, according to the same source. The firm advised on 197 deals with a total value of $161.7 billion.
Bose noted that the firm “was far ahead of its competitors in terms of the number of deals. Despite registering a year-over-year decline in the total value of advised deals, it still outperformed its peers in value due to its involvement in several large-scale transactions.” During H1 2025, the firm advised on 30 deals worth over $1 billion, including five mega deals valued at over $10 billion.
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