Introduction

The Indian economy has been growing with a rapid pace and has been emerging at the top, be it IT, R&D, pharmaceutical, infrastructure, energy, consumer retail, telecom, financial services, media, and hospitality etc. It is second fastest growing economy in the world with GDP touching 9.3 % last year.

This growth momentum was supported by the double digit growth of the services sector at 10.6% and industry at 9.7% in the first quarter of 2006-07. Investors, big companies, industrial houses view Indian market in a growing and proliferating phase, whereby returns on capital and the shareholder returns are high. Both the inbound and outbound mergers and acquisitions have increased dramatically.

According to Investment bankers, Merger & Acquisition (M&A) deals in India will cross $100 billion this year, which is double last year’s level and quadruple of 2005.

Mergers, acquisitions and takeovers have been a part of the business world for centuries. In today's dynamic economic environment, companies are often faced with decisions concerning these actions - after all, the job of management is to maximize shareholder value. Through mergers and acquisitions, a company can (at least in theory) develop a competitive advantage and ultimately increase shareholder value. The said terms to a layman may seem alike but in legal/ corporate terminology, they can be distinguished from each other:

# Merger: A full joining together of two previously separate corporations. A true merger in the legal sense occurs when both businesses dissolve and fold their assets and liabilities into a newly created third entity. This entails the creation of a new corporation.

# Acquisition: Taking possession of another business. Also called a takeover or buyout. It may be share purchase (the buyer buys the shares of the target company from the shareholders of the target company. The buyer will take on the company with all its assets and liabilities. ) or asset purchase (buyer buys the assets of the target company from the target company)

In simple terms, A merger involves the mutual decision of two companies to combine and become one entity; it can be seen as a decision made by two "equals", whereas an acquisition or takeover on the other hand, is characterized the purchase of a smaller company by a much larger one. This combination of "unequals" can produce the same benefits as a merger, but it does not necessarily have to be a mutual decision. A typical merger, in other words, involves two relatively equal companies, which combine to become one legal entity with the goal of producing a company that is worth more than the sum of its parts. In a merger of two corporations, the shareholders usually have their shares in the old company exchanged for an equal number of shares in the merged entity. In an acquisition, the acquiring firm usually offers a cash price per share to the target firm’s shareholders or the acquiring firm's share's to the shareholders of the target firm according to a specified conversion ratio. Either way, the purchasing company essentially finances the purchase of the target company, buying it outright for its shareholders

# Joint Venture: Two or more businesses joining together under a contractual agreement to conduct a specific business enterprise with both parties sharing profits and losses. The venture is for one specific project only, rather than for a continuing business relationship as in a strategic alliance.

# Strategic Alliance: A partnership with another business in which you combine efforts in a business effort involving anything from getting a better price for goods by buying in bulk together to seeking business together with each of you providing part of the product. The basic idea behind alliances is to minimize risk while maximizing your leverage.

# Partnership: A business in which two or more individuals who carry on a continuing business for profit as co-owners. Legally, a partnership is regarded as a group of individuals rather than as a single entity, although each of the partners file their share of the profits on their individual tax returns. Many mergers are in truth acquisitions. One business actually buys another and incorporates it into its own business model. Because of this misuse of the term merger, many statistics on mergers are presented for the combined mergers and acquisitions (M&A) that are occurring. This gives a broader and more accurate view of the merger market .