Indian outbound M&A tops $18 billion in 2025

Indian companies’ overseas dealmaking crossed $18 billion in 2025, according to market reports and company disclosures, as groups in pharmaceuticals, autos and technology used acquisitions to expand abroad. Financial Express reported outbound acquisitions accounted for 25.4% of India’s total deal market by value through Dec. 15, 2025, citing bankers who pointed to strong balance sheets and valuation gaps between Indian buyers and overseas targets. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, Tata Motors and Coforge were among the companies behind the biggest announced transactions linked to that push. Their targets ranged from a U.S. drugmaker to an Italian truck manufacturer and a Silicon Valley-founded AI engineering firm. The social-media claim that Apple and Microsoft together pledged $17.5 billion for AI investment in India could not be verified from primary sources reviewed for this story. (financialexpress.com) Microsoft separately announced on Dec. 9, 2025 that it would invest $17.5 billion in India over four years for cloud and AI infrastructure, skilling and operations. (organon.com) ### Which deals are carrying most of the total? Sun Pharma said on April 26, 2026 that it signed a definitive agreement to acquire Organon in an all-cash transaction valued at $11.75 billion including debt. Organon shareholders are to receive $14 a share, and the deal would give Sun Pharma entry into biosimilars and expand its position in women’s health and established brands, according to the companies. (news.microsoft.com) Tata Motors said on July 30, 2025 that it agreed to buy Iveco Group in a cash offer valuing the Italian truckmaker at about 3.8 billion euros, excluding the defense business and proceeds from its separation. The offer price was set at 14.1 euros per share after the defense carve-out, and Iveco’s board backed the bid. (organon.com) Coforge said on Dec. 26, 2025 that it agreed to acquire Encora at an enterprise value of $2.35 billion. The company said the purchase would create a roughly $2.5 billion tech-services business centered on AI-led engineering, cloud and data services. ### Why are Indian companies shopping overseas? (ivecogroup.com) Bhavesh Shah, managing director and head of investment banking at Equirus Capital, told Financial Express that Indian companies saw an advantage in scaling inorganically by gaining access to markets, technologies and products. He said valuation arbitrage was a major driver because Indian firms were trading at higher valuations than many overseas targets. (news.coforge.com) Ramakrishnan Kalyanaraman, senior managing director for strategic relationships at Spark Capital, told the newspaper that outbound acquisitions were being driven by “strategic necessity” as well as speed. He said building capabilities organically could not match the pace of change in global industries. (financialexpress.com) ### How much of this is tied to AI? Coforge said Encora was an “AI-native” engineering firm with strengths in AI, cloud and data, and that the acquisition would deepen its U.S. footprint and near-shore delivery capacity in Latin America. The company said Encora had partnerships with AWS, Microsoft, Google and Snowflake. (financialexpress.com) Microsoft said on Dec. 9, 2025 that it would spend $17.5 billion in India from 2026 to 2029, calling it its largest investment in Asia. The company said the plan would fund cloud and AI infrastructure, skilling and operations, and would build on a previously announced $3 billion commitment. (news.coforge.com) ### What still has to happen before these deals close? Sun Pharma said its Organon acquisition had been approved by both boards but still requires regulatory clearances and Organon shareholder approval. The companies did not give a closing date in the announcement. Tata Motors said completion of the Iveco offer is conditional on the separation of Iveco’s defense business, along with other customary steps under the tender process. (news.microsoft.com) Coforge said its Encora transaction is also subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. (organon.com) Microsoft said its new datacenter capacity in India is due to go live in mid-2026, while the company’s $17.5 billion spending plan runs through 2029. Sun Pharma, Tata Motors and Coforge have each said their announced acquisitions remain subject to the next formal approval stages. (news.microsoft.com) (ivecogroup.com)