The resurgence of deals has been one of the big stories of 2011. But what about the financial services information technology industry? At the mid-year point, the number of deals announced stands at 112, compared to 140 for the first six months of 2010 and 81 for the first six months of 2009, according to investment bank Berkery Noyes.

But while the number of transactions has dipped a bit, the dollar value of deals has soared.  The value of all transactions for the first half of 2011 was nearly $20 billion this year, compared with $11.5 billion for the first six months of 2010 and $7.3 billion for the first six months of 2009. The big bump in volume reflects mainly the proposed $12.4 billion deal that would combine NYSE Euronext and Deutsche Bourse.

The most active acquirer in first half of 2011 was Fiserve, which bought CashEdge, Credit Union On-Line, Mobile Commerce and Maverick Network Solutions. The most active acquirer over the last two and half years was Morningstar, which inked nine deals. We could see the value of all transactions continue to rise if more big exchanges get in on the act, which is an uncertain proposition right now. All in all, the environment for strategic deals is strong. But so is the industry into which these vendors sell. That will go along ways toward keeping them independent.

For more:
- here's the release

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