近年来，随着“一带一路”战略的推进和中国经济全球化的深入，中国企业的海外并购交易数量和交易金额都大幅增长。然而，跨境并购本高难度的交易，不确定性远高于国内并购，而超出交易双方控制范围的外部因素，经常成为阻碍交易进程或左右交易结果的重要因素，例如突如其来的全球疫情、政府出于政治目的审批障碍等。尽管如此，交易参与方的行为仍然对跨境并购的成败起决定性影响。其中，买方更应采取主动的措施去提高并购的成功率。
并购的目的千差万别，但对买方而言，有两个硬性指标应是通用的：成本和收益。只要能够降低并购的成本，提高并购的收益，那么交易就不至于太过失败。
从技术角度讲，未知的风险会提高并购的成本，对并购标的的合理整合将优化买卖双方的协同效应，从而提高并购的收益。因此，并购成败的关键在于风险的规避和并购后的企业整合。基于长年实践和观察，我们从规避风险和优化整合的角度归纳出八条经验，供中国投资者参考。Overseas M&A is an important way for Chinese companies to achieve rapid development, therefore, M&A should serve the development strategy of the company.Defining the purpose of the M&A and aligning it with the development strategy of the enterprise is the primary consideration for Chinese enterprises before carrying out overseas M&A.At this stage, Chinese enterprises implement overseas M&A mainly for the following purposes.1、 To build an overseas structure to achieve overseas listing or financing.2、 To expand te sales market and digest excess capacity.3、 消灭竞争对手，巩固市场地位；
4、 转移产品产地，以规避反倾销、反补贴等贸易保护措施；
5、 利用外国的廉价生产要素，降低生产成本；
6、 获取国外的技术、专利、品牌、数据或其他知识产权；
7、 获取特殊自然资源；
8、 利用并购对象提高买方的知名度；
9、 分散收入来源地，对冲汇率风险；
10、整合上下游资源，实现产业一体化。
在海外并购中，交易双方的信息不对称更甚于国内并购。除了并购的标的本身，卖方也应成为买方调查熟悉的对象。.In fact, the key to the success or failure of a business is the people, and the key to the success or failure of a transaction is also the people. As the saying goes, “it is better to buy than to sell”. An honest, fair and reliable seller can help reduce the buyer’s risk, while a seller with a bad heart and a bad track record can hardly make the buyer feel the joy of victory.The more comprehensive the understanding of the seller, the better, including education background, work history, personality traits, professional expertise, hobbies, family situation, social relations, financial credit, transaction records, etc., the better to know a good deal.The buyer can gain insight into the seller’s value orientation, character and reputation, thinking style, behavior, negotiation style, economic status, and motivation, which will help the buyer to judge the feasibility of the transaction, design the transaction structure, determine the valuation and offer, develop negotiation strategies and control the transaction process.需要特别当心的是纯粹套现型卖家，他们出售公司是由于遭遇了严重困难或危机，例如资不抵债、牵涉犯罪、政府制裁等，甩包袱脱身是唯一的目的，甚至不惜以优惠的价格作为诱饵。面对这种卖家，买家要实事求是地权衡，这个便宜我该不该捡，后面的窟窿我能不能填？
了解卖方的方法很多，包括正面、侧面和反面的方法。向卖方本人询问、到政府机关查询、调取银行征信记录属于常见的正面调查。
侧面调查的对象可以包括目标企业的客户、供应商、合作机构、员工、分包商、代理人等，据说门卫、前台和清洁工是最有价值的信息来源之一。与卖方一起进行一些商务以外的活动，也是侧面调查的好方法。例如，打高尔夫之所以受全球商界人士欢迎，一个重要原因是因为它可以在轻松的氛围下增进彼此的认识和了解。
反面的调查可以从卖方或目标公司的竞争对手、争议方或利益冲突方入手，例如，向最近与卖方或目标公司有过诉讼的对象进行问询等。如果能够做到正面、侧面和反面三管齐下，买方离“知己知彼，百战不殆”就不远了。
The reverse side of the investigationcan start from the seller or target’s competitors, disputing parties or parties in conflict of interest, for example, to ask the target who has recently had litigation with the seller or target company, etc. If you can do all three, the buyer will not be far from “knowing the enemy and knowing himself”.
尽职调查是买方克服信息不对称的重要手段，但也要避免重点不清的无效调查，有针对性的尽职调查才能更有效地帮助买方识别风险。决定尽职调查的侧重点的主要因素包括：标的类型（股权或资产）、目标所属行业、收购的目的（参股、控股或独资）、双方的关系（是否关联企业、是否有长期业务往来）、目标企业的类型（国有企业、私营企业、上市公司）等。行业特质也将影响尽职调查的侧重方向。根据美亚保险的统计，在与并购卖方的信息披露相关的纠纷中，制造行业项目的纠纷多与财务报表有关，医药行业项目的纠纷多集中在合规方面，而科技行业项目的纠纷则常见于税务和知识产权方面。据此，对不同行业目标公司的尽职调查，应根据纠纷高发的领域选择侧重点。总之，根据项目特点有选择性、有侧重点地开展尽职调查，可以取得事半功倍的效果。Be more rational in valuation
Buyers should be rational when valuing a target company or asset, try to restrain impulses caused by emotions or market fluctuations, and give themselves more room to enter or exit in valuation.
There arethree main types of M&A valuation methods:the income approach, the asset approach, and the market approach. The income approach is based on the discounted value of the expected income of the target enterprise over a period of time in the future and is usually applicable to target enterprises with more stable cash flows.The asset approach is generally based on the book value or liquidation value of the target assets and is usually applicable to loss-making enterprises or asset acquisitions.收益法以目标企业在未来一段时期内的预期收入的折现值为评估基础，通常适用于有较稳定现金流的目标企业。资产法一般以目标资产的账面值或清算价值为评估基础，通常适用于亏损企业或资产收购。市场法相对简单，即以类似企业或过往类似并购交易的定价作为对目标企业或资产估值的参照值。
三种方法都以财务报表和调研数据为依据，看似客观，其实都很容易受到主观因素的影响。, which appear to be objective, but in fact, are all susceptible to subjective factors.
总之，在对并购标的进行估值时，保持适度的悲观和谦逊，可使买方处于较安全的位置。
Complete the deal in stages
If conditions allow, the buyer can break a one-time M&A deal into multiple transactions in stages to allow more time for risks to be exposed and resolved, resulting in a higher level of deal security.The root cause of M&A failure is primarily information asymmetry. The risk of doing a deal with a stranger is much higher than that of an acquaintance. Although due diligence can help buyers understand the key information of the target company, the investigation time is limited, the information that can be obtained by professional investigators is one-sided, and the information is likely to be filtered or “embellished” by the seller.One of the most effective ways to overcome information asymmetry is to turn the seller from a stranger to an acquaintance.Two strategiescan be used: one is to conduct a transaction with the seller for a period of time and wait until sufficient trust is established before making the acquisition; the other is to make a phased acquisition, i.e., acquiring a small portion of the equity first, and then acquiring the remaining equity when the set conditions are met until a predetermined percentage of the equity is reached.Even if a phased acquisition is not possible, the buyer can at least consider paying in installments,lengthening the payment interval, and setting stricter preconditions, which can achieve a similar risk-averse effect.Plan your M&A well in advance
Everything that is done in advance is done in advance. M&A is a complex transaction that requires careful planning in advance. A well-developed M&A plan can help buyers anticipate obstacles and risks to the transaction and develop a plan to address them.Typically, an M&A plan needs to clearly answer at least the following questions.Strategic objectives: Why do you want to acquire? What is the acquisition intended to achieve? How will the acquisition target be selected?Financial analysis: What is the maximum acceptable price? What are the assets available to pay the purchase price? How much debt are you prepared to assume? What are the available sources of financing? What is the target return on investment for the acquisition?Integration plan: What synergies can be realized from the acquisition? In what areas will the acquired company need to integrate to achieve synergies? What are the general steps of integration? How much will the integration cost?战略目标：为什么要收购？收购要实现哪些目的？收购对象如何选择？
财务分析：可接受的最高价格是多少？可用于支付收购对价的资产有多少？准备承担多少负债？可使用的融资渠道有哪些？收购的投资回报率目标是多少？
整合计划：并购可实现哪些协同效应？收购后的企业需在哪些方面进行整合以实现协同效应？整合的大体步骤如何安排？整合将需要多少开支？执行方案：收购将分哪几个步骤实施？需要获得哪些政府机构的批准？需要哪些第三方的配合？需要聘请哪些中介服务机构？买方应组建怎样的并购任务团队？时间规划：收购计划在多长时间内完成？每个步骤预计耗费多少时间？哪些变数可能延误收购的进度？买方在制订并购计划时，应秉持保守谨慎的态度，切忌过分乐观，因为并购涉及众多参与者和利益相关者，任何一个环节的情况变化都可能产生蝴蝶效应，对整个交易造成影响。例如，作为收购主体的BVI壳公司未能按时注册成立，将耽误交易的签约和交割等。因此，在每个环节、每个指标上多留点余量，有助于使并购计划更客观、更务实、更接近于交易的实际执行结果。
Buyers should be conservative and cautious when planning an M&A and should not be overly optimistic, as M&A involves many participants and stakeholders, and changes in any one of them can have a butterfly effect on the entire transaction.
For example, failure to incorporate the BVI shell company as the subject of the acquisition on time will delay the signing and delivery of the transaction. Therefore, leaving more leeway in every step and indicator will help make the M&A plan more objective, pragmatic, and closer to the actual execution results of the transaction.
M&A liability insurancecan be a powerful supplement to the inherent weaknesses of liquidated damages clauses in protecting the buyer’s interests and can facilitate the closing of the transaction.Generally speaking, a buyer’s greatest risk in an M&A transaction comes from the seller’s breach of contract, including the withholding of information or even fraud prior to signing. As a result, the buyer will pay particular attention to the seller’s breach of contract liability provisions during the negotiation of the agreement, expecting a strict agreement to ensure that the buyer will be compensated for damages in the event of a seller breach. However, in practice, this strategy also has drawbacks to the detriment of the buyer.First, the more stringent the liability for breach of contract, the higher the risk that the seller will raise its offer or refuse to concede other significant claims of the buyer as a check, thereby increasing the probability of a breakdown in negotiations.Second, in the case of multiple buyers bidding, the buyer with higher requirements for breach of contract will be at a disadvantage in bidding.Third, it is often difficult for a buyer to pursue a seller for breach of contract without lengthy and expensive judicial proceedings, especially for cross-border claims; even if the buyer is successful, it may be difficult to obtain actual compensation due to enforcement difficulties (the seller is insolvent or the seller’s assets are scattered in different jurisdictions).Finally, in cases where the seller retains a portion of the equity or continues to participate in the company’s operations after the acquisition, the buyer’s claim is not conducive to maintaining a cooperative relationship and negatively affects the post-merger integration, with the buyer still losing out in the end.
首先，违约责任越严苛，卖方风险越高，作为制衡，卖方会提高报价或在买方的其他重大诉求方面拒绝让步，从而增大了谈判破裂的概率。
其次，在多个买方竞购的情形下，对违约责任提出更高要求的买方在竞标中将处于劣势。
第三，买方要追究卖方的违约责任，通常难免漫长而昂贵的司法程序，对于跨国索赔尤其如此；即使买方胜诉，也可能由于执行困难（卖方没有偿付能力，或者卖方的资产散布于不同的司法辖区）而很难实际获得赔偿。
最后，在卖方于收购后继续保留部分股权或继续参与公司经营的情形下，买方的索赔也不利于维持双方的合作关系，给并购后的整合造成负面影响，最后损失的仍然是买方。
作为一种避险工具，并购责任保险可以有效缓解上述矛盾。并购责任保险的原理在于将卖方违约的赔偿责任转移给保险公司，保险公司通过自身的财力和信用向买方提供保障。以最受欢迎的陈述与保证责任险为例，根据通常的保单条款，当卖方违反其在并购协议中作出的陈述与保证时，买方即可获得保险公司的赔偿而无需向卖方追偿。当然，保险公司的理赔与并购协议的违约赔偿责任并不冲突，对于保险不能覆盖的损失（如免赔额以内的损失和责任限额以上的损失），买方仍然可依据并购协议向卖方追偿。
与违约责任条款相比，并购责任保险的优势主要表现在：
- 可大幅提高赔偿额度，增强对买方的保障；
- 保险期限可超出卖方承诺的责任期限，使买方有更充分的时间发现瑕疵和寻求补偿；
- 买方可直接获得保险公司的赔偿，无需寻求司法救济；
- 通过责任转嫁，有利于买卖双方建立和保持良好的关系，提高交易和整合的成功率。
目前，除了陈述与保证责任险以外，国际市场上可购买的并购责任保险还有税务责任险、诉讼买断险、环境责任险、欺诈性转让和继受者责任险等。并购责任险于2010年左右进入中国市场，中国买家可以在国内购买适用于境内或跨境并购的责任保险。
Good cultural integration
并购只是实现外延式增长（并购）目标的第一步，并购后的企业整合才是产生回报的关键。文化整合是并购整合最难的也是最关键的部分，可决定并购的成败。 post-merger integration is the key to generating returns. Cultural integration is the most difficult and critical part of M&A integration and can determine the success or failure of an M&A.The boundaries of corporate culture are blurred and can include corporate vision, values, business style, management philosophy, management system, evaluation system, and even dress style. For cross-border acquisitions, differences in corporate culture may also include language, customs, religion, ethnic relations, social class, ideology, etc. As the active party in an M&A, the buyer should carry out integration based on respect and tolerance of the other party’s corporate culture; unbridled cultural superiority is the biggest obstacle to cultural integration.Numerous studies have shown that most M&As do not turn out as well as they should, and that cultural integration is the biggest challenge to successful M&As.Generally speaking, there are three types of cultural integration strategies:Fusion, in which a new culture is created that is different from the existing culture of both parties;大量研究表明，大多数并购的结果并不尽如人意，而文化整合是成功并购的最大挑战。
一般而言，企业的文化整合策略有三种：融合式，即打造区别于双方现有文化的全新文化；同化式，一方全盘接受另一方的文化；分隔式，即双方各自保留原有文化。三种策略并无优劣之分，惟须注意的是，文化整合不是目的，而是实现并购的战略目标的一种手段，因此，什么时候融合、用什么方式融合、以多快的速度完成融合、融合到什么深度等，都应放到战略目标的大框架下考虑，只有符合并购的战略目标的文化融合才有可能是成功的融合。
无论是对已跻身世界500强的中国跨国集团，还是对刚刚走出国门的中资民营企业来说，海外并购都是充满风险的挑战。挑战既来自外部环境，来自交易对方，也源自中国买家自身。中国买家无法左右外部环境，也难以控制交易对手，唯有从自身出发，摸索降低风险、接近成功的路径。经验表明，做好交易目的、对手情况、尽职调查、标的估值、交易步骤、并购计划、风险转嫁、文化整合等八个方面的工作，中国买方可有效提高交易的成功率。
The challenges come from the external environment, from the counterparties, and from the Chinese buyers themselves. Chinese buyers cannot influence the external environment, nor can they control their counterparties, so they have to find their own path to reduce risks and approach success. Experience shows that a Chinese buyer can effectively improve the success rate of a transaction by doing a good job in eight areas: transaction purpose, counterparty profile, due diligence, subject valuation, transaction steps, M&A plan, risk transfer, and cultural integration.
There arethree main types of M&A valuation methods:the income approach, the asset approach, and the market approach. The income approach is based on the discounted value of the expected income of the target enterprise over a period of time in the future and is usually applicable to target enterprises with more stable cash flows.The asset approach is generally based on the book value or liquidation value of the target assets and is usually applicable to loss-making enterprises or asset acquisitions.
