2026年夏季全球软件行业更新报告

Global SoftwareSector Update Industry Insights Summer 2026 Learn More ExecutiveSummaryExecutive SummaryExecutive SummaryExecutive Summary Annualized Deal Volume on Track for theSecond-Highest Year, While Value Falls to aNine-Year Low Strategic Buyers Continued to DominateDeal Activity in Q2 2026, with PrivateEquity Volume Well Below Its 2021 Peak Private M&A Multiples Climbed, withEV/LTM EBITDA Up 25% to 20.2x Key Market Updates Software M&A activity remained resilient through H1 2026, with annualized deal volume on track to reach approximately 2,670 transactions, making 2026the second-highest year on record by deal count. However, announced deal value remains subdued, with H1 annualized deal value ofapproximately $120billion, reflecting the continued absence of mega-deals. Deal value rebounded sequentially in Q2, driven by a recovery in transactions valued between $1billion and $10 billion. Strategic acquirers continued to dominate software M&A activity in Q2 2026, accounting for 74% of all announced transactions,compared with an averageof 69% during 2024 and 2025. Private equity activity remains well below the peak levels seen in 2021, reflecting a more selective investmentenvironment. Strategic acquirers remain focused on acquiring AI-enabled capabilities, proprietary data assets and workflow-centric platforms that canstrengthen long-term competitive positioning and accelerate AI adoption. M&A activity remained concentrated in strategically important software categories, including industrial AI, customer experience,data management,infrastructure, construction technology and vertical market software. Notable transactions during the quarter included Long Lake’s acquisition of AmexGBT, Salesforce’s acquisition of Fin, Schneider Electric’s acquisition ofCognite, Autodesk’s acquisition ofMaintainXand Publicis’ acquisition ofLiveRamp.Across these transactions, buyers consistently highlighted AI deployment, operational data access and workflow automation asprimary acquisition drivers. Valuations strengthened during Q2. Median strategic transaction multiples increased to 6.0x EV/LTM revenue, while revenue multiples also expandedacross the sub-$25 million and $25 million-$ 100 million revenue cohorts. EBITDA-based valuations were particularly robust, with median EV/LTMEBITDA multiples increasing 25% to 20.2x. Public software markets also showed signs of stabilization, with media SaaS EV/NTMrevenue multiples rising6% quarter-over-quarter to 3.3x. While still below the long-term median of 5.4x, equity market performance improved across mostsoftware subsectorsduring Q2, suggesting investor confidence is gradually recovering. Looking ahead, companies demonstrating durable double-digit growth at scale, strong profitability and credible AI positioning continue to command ameaningful valuation premium in both public and private markets. Annualized Deal Volume on Track for the Second-Highest Year,While Value Falls to a Nine-Year Low Robust Mid-Market and Small Cap M&A Activity Puts 2026 on Track for Second Highest Year by Deal Count Deal Value Rebounded vs Prior Quarter, Driven by a Recovery in$1–10bn Transactions, Though >$10bn Deals Remained Absent Deal Value in the $1bn–$10bn Range Grew More Than 50% Quarter-over-Quarter Quarterly Deal Values ($ bn)1 Top number in each bar indicates total deal value in quarter Strategic Buyers Continued to Dominate Deal Activity in Q22026, with Private Equity Volume Well Below Its 2021 Peak Strategic Deals Accounted for 74% of Deals in Q2 2026 Compared to an Average of 69% During 2024 and 2025 Quarterly Deal Volume1 Top number in each bar indicates total deal volumes in quarter Top Six Software Acquisitions over Q2 2026 by Enterprise Value Cogniteprovides cloud-native industrial AI andDataOpssoftware and low-code AIagents for upstream and downstream energy, process manufacturing, powergeneration and grid, and renewable energy sectors globally. Its software providesfeatures for integrating, contextualizing and structuring industrial data into a unifieddata model, enabling data access,modeling, and analysis, and deployment of AIapplications and workflows. American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT) provides corporate travelmanagement software for businesses globally. The software provides features forbookings, meetings and expense management as well as centralized reporting,customer experience and automated reconciliation. It also provides meetings andevents management services. June 2026 Amex GBT's acquisition by Long Lake is intended to fund continued investment inAI and human-agent capabilities for corporate travel, including booking, traveldisruption resolution and travel administration. The rationale is that partneringwith Long Lake supports development of these tools for Amex GBT's customers. Cognite'sacquisition strengthens AVEVA, Schneider Electric's wholly ownedindustrial software company, in higher-growth segments of the industrial softwarem