We examine the impact of policy uncertainty on cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As). Using a sample of 23 countries worldwide over the period from 2003 to 2016, we provide evidence that when a country has high policy uncertainty, the volume of inbound acquisition decreases whereas the total number of outbound deals increase significantly. Policy uncertainty also encourages acquirers to use stock as a method of payment and offer lower premium to targets. We also find that the percentage of full control cross-border M&A deals is negatively correlated to the level of policy uncertainty. Further evidence suggests that policy uncertainty complicates the takeover process by increasing the probability of withdrawn and pending deals as well as requiring longer time periods to complete deals.

我们研究了政策不确定性对跨境并购 (M&A) 的影响。使用 2003 年至 2016 年期间全球 23 个国家的样本，我们提供证据表明，当一个国家的政策不确定性较高时，对内收购量会减少，而对外交易总数会显着增加。政策的不确定性还鼓励收购方使用股票作为支付方式，并为目标提供较低的溢价。我们还发现，完全控制跨境并购交易的百分比与政策不确定性水平呈负相关。进一步的证据表明，政策不确定性增加了撤回和未决交易的可能性，并且需要更长的时间来完成交易，从而使收购过程复杂化。