In this manuscript, we present three controversial cross-border merger and acquisition (CBMA) deals that failed to be consummated after public announcement. Our cross-case analysis reveals that scandal, which causes the controversy surrounding these deals, is a non-market activity, whose main concern is to ensure the status quo in the target country through generation of executive and legislative action favoring the target country threatened actor. Scandal is a last resort act that makes the deal widely salient through transformation of the bid into a national threat. Target country actors threatened by the CBMA skillfully use scandal, along with their corporate political activities (CPA), to hinder deals that they could not have stopped otherwise. It is mainly the inadequacy of the CPA efforts that lead to emergence of scandal. Once condemned of wrongdoing, the acquirers instantly become persona non grata, even in the cases where the government is supportive of the deal.

在本手稿中，我们提出了三个有争议的跨境并购交易，这些交易在公开宣布后未能完成。我们的跨案例分析显示，引起围绕这些交易的争议的丑闻是一种非市场活动，其主要关注点是通过产生有利于目标国威胁演员的行政和立法行动来确保目标国的现状。 。丑闻是不得已的举动，它通过将要约转变为国家威胁，使该交易广为人知。受CBMA威胁的目标国家/地区参与者巧妙地利用丑闻以及其公司政治活动（CPA）来阻止原本无法停止的交易。CPA努力不足主要是导致丑闻的出现。