This year, we’re bringing in the end of the year with a series: 12 Days ‘til New Years. We’ll continue our tradition of highlighting the most notable brands and spending across ad tech platforms, consumer media, and B2B industries.

Today, we continue our New Years series by bringing you the 8 biggest mergers of 2020, including companies working in healthcare, entertainment, and more. Amid all the rapid change of 2020, large corporations were able to make the most of it by purchasing more specialized assets. 

Those listed here are the eight biggest mergers of the year, but these were accompanied by plenty more. Check back here at our blog every Tuesday for each week’s most notable mergers and acquisitions.

8 Important Mergers and Acquisitions from 2020

Allergan Plc and AbbVia, Inc.

In May, AbbVie, Inc. acquired Allergan plc for a whopping $63 billion. The merger diversified Abbvie’s revenue stream considerably to include aesthetics and neurology. AbbVie’s already held leadership in areas such as immunology and hematologic oncology.

Analysts believe that this acquisition will make AbbVie the world’s fourth-largest drugmaker by the end of the 2020 fiscal year with a combined revenue of $50 billion.

Sprint Corporation and T-Mobile USA

In April, T-Mobile USA acquired Sprint, bringing about questions of the industry’s progress in the deregulation process. The $26 billion merger created the third largest wireless communications company in the United States.

This merger can’t be attributed to the volatility of 2020—it’s been in the works since 2018. This deal had to go through several iterations of legal obstacles before close. Consumer advocates and state representatives argued that the consolidation in the industry would discourage competition and lead to higher prices. 

In response, T-Mobile reiterated a promise to keep rate plans the same or even better for the next three years. The integration of Sprint is projected to provide 14 times more capacity to T-Mobile’s networks in the next 6 years and allow them to build a nationwide 5G network at a faster rate.

TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation and Schwab Holdings

In October, Schwab Holdings acquired TD Ameritrade for $26 billion. The merger had been in the works for nearly 11 months.

This acquisition is notable in that the combined companies will now be responsible for over 28 million brokerage accounts. TD Ameritrade and Schwab will continue to operate as separate brokerages, as the integration of the two brands will take place over the next 18 to 36 months. 

TD Ameritrade is one of the largest online brokers in the industry, but fierce competition in recent years has pressured discount brokerage firms to reduce commissions to zero. With the loss in commission revenues, brokerage firms have sought to consolidate and scale to lower operating expenses. 

Livongo Health and Teladoc Health

Another October merger was Teladoc Health, which gained Livongo Health. The $18.5 billion transaction was completed in less than three months and has resulted in a blending of companies to create a larger whole-body virtual health service.

This acquisition is significant in a year where even in-person healthcare providers were seeking virtual options, and they’re services were in high demand.

Caesars Entertainment Corporation and Eldorado Resorts Inc.

Eldorado Resorts acquired Caesars Entertainment Corporation in July for $17.3 billion and will now go by the more widely-recognized name of Caesars Entertainment. The new merged entity becomes the largest casino owner worldwide.

The company now owns and operates more than 55 casinos in 16 US states, including 8 properties on the Las Vegas Strip.

Ellie Mae and Intercontinental Exchange Group

October marked Intercontinental Exchange Group’s latest acquisition, this time of Ellie Mae. The $11 billion merger follows IEG’s acquisitions of the Mortgage Electronics Registrations System and Simplifile. 

Now that the three mergers are complete, IEG’s expanded platform will bring together all stakeholders for mortgages under the same digital mortgage ecosystem for the first time.

CreditKarma and Intuit

This month, Intuit gained CreditKarma for $7 billion. The company states that this merger comes at an important time, as the COVID-19 pandemic has stretched many people’s finances and made the companies’ shared goal all the more critical.

The goal? Delivering a personal financial assistant to help consumers improve their lives by finding financial products to increase savings, pay down debt, and access their money faster.

Boost Mobile and DISH Network

Last but not least of our top 2020 mergers is DISH Network’s acquisition of Boost Mobile this past July. The $1.4 billion transaction was DISH’s official entry into the retail wireless market.

This deal was part of the concessions for regulatory approval of the $26 billion T-Mobile and Sprint merger. The two wireless carriers agreed to sell Boost Mobile to DISH Network and 800MHz wireless spectrum for $3.6 billion over three years. The new wireless service acquisition, as well as the wireless spectrum, will help DISH build its 5G broadband network and put it on the map to become the fourth carrier to compete with AT&T, Verizon and the new T-Mobile.

Want more highlights from 2020? Check back tomorrow for the next in our countdown ‘til New Year: 7 Brands Buying More in 2020. 

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