Do European bidders pay more in cross-border than in domestic acquisitions? New evidence from Continental Europe and the UK

In this paper, we investigate whether European mergers and acquisitions (M&A) create more value to target than bidding firm shareholders, and why bidders pay larger premiums in cross-border than in domestic acquisitions. Using a sample of 275 intra-European public acquisitions initiated between 2003 and 2010, we find target firm shareholders to earn significantly positive bid premiums in both domestic and cross-border acquisitions. However,...