GlobalData’s latest league table placed Sullivan & Cromwell first by deal value and Alston & Bird first by deal count among legal advisers on financial services mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the first half of 2026.
Using data from its Financial Deals Database, GlobalData reported that Sullivan & Cromwell worked on transactions worth $24.9bn, the highest total by value. Alston & Bird recorded the highest number of mandates, with 23 deals.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
In the value ranking, White & Case was in second place with $18.6bn, followed by Clifford Chance on $18.2bn, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison on $16.9bn, and Latham & Watkins on $16.7bn.
In the volume table, Kirkland & Ellis ranked second with 22 deals. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett followed with 21, while Latham & Watkins advised on 20 deals.
GlobalData lead analyst Aurojyoti Bose commented: “Alston & Bird was the top adviser by volume in H1 2025 and retained its leadership position by this metric in H1 2026, despite a year-on-year decline in the total number of deals advised by it.
“Similarly, there was a decline in the total value of deals advised by Sullivan & Cromwell in H1 2026 compared to H1 2025. However, it remained well ahead of its peers in terms of value. Sullivan & Cromwell also occupied the fifth position by volume with 16 deals.”
GlobalData’s league tables are based on the real-time tracking of thousands of company websites, advisory firm websites and other reliable sources available on the secondary domain. A dedicated team of analysts monitors all these sources to gather in-depth details for each deal, including adviser names.
To ensure further robustness to the data, the company also seeks submissions of deals from leading advisers.
