Investment bank fees in APAC ex. Japan log 8% rise to top $5b in Q1

Estimated advisory fees due to M&As rose 42% to $706.5m in the first quarter of 2025.

An estimated $5b of investment banking fees were generated in APAC excluding Japan in Q1 2025, 8% year-on-year (YoY) higher, according to data from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) Deals Intelligence.

Fees from the region accounted for 18% of the total fees earned globally, whilst IB fees in the Americas and Europe accounted for 55% and 22%, respectively.

Equity capital markets underwriting fees rose 8% YoY to $786.7m, the highest first quarter fee total since 2023.

Debt capital markets fees saw a 9% growth from a year earlier to $3.2b; syndicated lending fees dropped 34% to $322.9m.

Estimated advisory fees earned in APAC ex. Japan from completed mergers & acquisitions (M&A) transactions reached $706.5m—a 42% rise compared to Q1 2024.

Amongst financial institutions, CITIC amassed the most overall investment banking fees in APAC ex. Japan, with a total of $262.5m in fees. This accounted for 5.3% of the wallet share of the total APAC IB fee pool, LSEG Deals Intelligence said.

M&As, equity offers rose
M&A related deal making activity in the region totalled $220.9b in Q1, a 68.3% increase and the strongest annual start since 2022, LSEG said.

The growth in deal value was driven by megadeals, however, as the total number of deals fell by 10.2% YoY in Q1.

At least six mega deals involving Asia Pacific were announced in the first quarter of 2025, with an aggregate value of US$97.4b. This marks the highest total for mega deals ever recorded in a first quarter.  

Meanwhile, equity and equity-related offerings raised a total of US$43.2b in the first quarter of 2025, up 17.9% YoY, making it the highest first quarter total since 2023.

China accounted for 60.5% of the ECM proceeds, raising US$26.1b– a three-fold increase compared to a year ago.

India and Australia followed with 15.1% and 9.8% market share, respectively, according to LSEG data.

Initial public offerings (IPO) totaled US$8.7b, 23.2% higher from a year ago, despite a 4% decline in number of IPOs.

Follow-on offerings raised US$26.9b, down 3.1% from last year, alongside a 13.3% drop in number of follow-ons.

Meanwhile, convertibles surged, generating US$7.5b with number of convertible offerings soaring by 192.3%.

Goldman Sachs took the lead in APAC’s ECM underwriting rankings with 12.3% market share and US$5.3b in proceeds. 

Busiest Q1 period for bond offerings
Primary bond offerings from APAC-domiciled issuers raised US$1.2b in bond proceeds during the quarter, 22.6% higher than in Q1 2024. It also surpassed the record start set in 2022, LSEG said.

The number of bonds also grew 5.5% YoY. This marked the busiest-ever first quarter period since records began in 1980, according to LSEG.

China accounted for 78.2% of Asia Pacific bond proceeds worth US$937.2b, up 22.8% from a year ago.

South Korea followed with 6.5% market share as bond proceeds fell 2.9% YoY to US$78.1b.

Australia rounded out the top three and accounted for 5.2% market share as proceeds reached US$62.3b, up 25.3% YoY.

CITIC led the Asia Pacific-issued bonds underwriting, representing 5.7% market share with related proceeds of US$68.8 billion.