M&A Realities in Advanced Materials

Q1. Could you start by giving us a brief overview of your professional background, particularly focusing on your expertise in the industry?

I work in Corporate Development and M&A, and over the last 12 years I’ve been involved in cross-border transactions totalling over $2B. My focus has been across Industrial, Specialty Chemicals, and Energy Transition sectors, covering the full M&A lifecycle—from building the investment thesis to handling complex carve-outs and post-merger integration.

Currently, I lead M&A and growth initiatives at Heraeus GmbH. I have also worked with Tata Group and Yes Bank, where I was involved in investments, joint ventures, and transformation programs across Europe, India, and the MENA region. Most of what I speak about comes from executing deals end to end, not just evaluating them on paper.

Q2. When cross-border deals look attractive on paper, where do synergies most often fail to materialize in practice—and what early signals do you watch for?

In my experience, cross-border deals often fail on what I call “mathematical synergies.” The 1+1=3 logic looks compelling in a model, but it rarely accounts for the friction you encounter during execution.

The issue is not usually the financial model—it’s what I refer to as the …