From M&A to AI, how CFOs are mapping out the year ahead

Corporate chiefs spent much of the year concerned about inflation and the U.S. election and generally focused on how to wring more operational efficiencies out of their organizations. And with the new Trump administration set to take office, expectations for lower interest rates, measures to curb inflation and a pullback in regulatory scrutiny also have some chief financial officers adjusting their game plans and gearing up for “animal spirits" to provide a tailwind for M&A activity in the coming year. “The big difference with GenAI is you can literally go through tens of millions of interactions and really get deep summarization on what’s happening," McGuire said. “Between an incoming change administration and a different economic environment, from an industry perspective, you’re going to see that that kind of momentum will continue to 2025," said David Dean, managing director for M&A consulting at consulting firm WTW. Whether M&A picks up in 2025 will depend on how much the Federal Reserve cuts rates, however, and exactly which regulatory changes Trump brings, according to Suzanne Kumar, an executive vice president in the global M&A and divestitures practice at consulting giant Bain & Co. Deal activity in the venture-capital and private-equity sectors will also be a factor, she said.