XVI Russian M&A Congress: White Nights 2026

Today, the Astoria Hotel in St. Petersburg became the venue for what is considered one of the most substantial sessions of the XVI Russian M&A Congress "White Nights" — the plenary discussion "M&A Market 2026: Change the Equation." The session was moderated by Suren Gortsunyan, Co-Founding Partner and Head of Transactional Practice at Dyakin, Gortsunyan & Partners (DGP).

The discussion focused less on transaction volume and more on how the core parameters of the Russian M&A market have evolved in 2026, including the cost and availability of capital, risk structures, asset quality, and the changing roles of banks, strategic and financial investors, and growth companies.

The discussion brought together leading market representatives, including:

• Oleg Mikhailovsky (Sber), who spoke about how banks currently evaluate M&A deals, what types of projects they are ready to finance, and which factors have become decisive for transaction creditworthiness.

• Olga Yasko (Kept), who shared her perspective on business valuation dynamics, factors influencing multiples, and typical mistakes made by owners when preparing companies for sale.

• Vladimir Androsov (HyperLenta), who presented a practical perspective on the acquisition of O’KEY, business integration, and the formation of a future M&A pipeline from the CFO standpoint of a public company.

• Dmitry Marchan (Melling, Voitishkin & Partners), who spoke about the new legal architecture of deals, the development of option mechanisms, and the prospects for a potential return of foreign investors.

• Sergey Shishkin (Reliable Investments), who outlined the approach of financial investors to searching for opportunities amid volatility and evaluating the investment horizon.

• Olga Polyakova (Motorika), who shared her experience in utilizing M&A and strategic partnerships as a scaling tool for growth companies to acquire not just market share, but also technologies, teams, and access to new markets.

The participants discussed whether deals can be structured effectively in today’s high-cost capital environment, how the balance between organic growth and acquisitions is shifting, and which mechanisms can survive this period of stress to become the new market norm.

Particular attention was paid to the question of why dialogue between banks, strategic investors, financial investors, and entrepreneurs is especially critical right now, as well as to what the Russian M&A market might look like over the next 2–3 years and what decisions its participants will have to make.

The evening concluded on a high note with an awards ceremony celebrating the best deal of the year in beauty retail. DGP acted as legal counsel to Rive Gauche Group on the M&A transaction involving the sale of a 100% equity stake in Rive Gauche Group to the merged company Wildberries & Russ (RWB).

Our team is deeply honored to be part of a project that has been so highly recognized by the professional community.