Only two private equity-backed terminated deals were reported in the third quarter, a substantial drop from the 14 reported the prior quarter and the lowest quarterly tally in the past three years, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data.

The third quarter also shows an 85% year-on-year decline in all terminated M&A transactions with 31, the lowest quarterly count since at least 2020.

– Download a spreadsheet with data featured in this story. – Read about trends in global terminated M&A in the second quarter. – Read about trends in global private equity entries in September.

The value of the two private equity deals that were not completed was less than $1 million, the lowest in at least three years and a huge decline from the $26.38 billion in the third quarter of 2022.

In terms of overall M&A, the value of terminated deals in the third quarter was about $12.89 billion, down 78% from $58.37 billion in the year-ago period and trending downward for the year to Sept. 30.

The two canceled transactions with private equity involvement were Planet Ventures Inc.'s deal to acquire Pow Claims from Canada-based gold mining and exploration company Wildwood Exploration Inc., and the deal to sell Dutch bicycle manufacturer VanMoof BV by a group of investors including NVP Associates LLC, Balderton Capital (UK) LLP, Hillhouse Investment Management Ltd., Felix Capital Partners LLP and Slingshot Ventures.

Euronext NV's canceled deal to buy Allfunds Group PLC from Hellman & Friedman LLC, BNP Paribas SA and other investors remains the largest terminated private equity-backed deal of the year through Sept. 30.