Buy Siders Rejoice; A dismal market serves as an ample proving ground for buy-side advisers.(Round Up)

Byline: Avram Davis

On July 1, nearly every data provider who services the M&A space emerged with their first half numbers. In the end, it didn't matter where the data was coming from, it all reflected the same dismal market that M&A pros are already familiar with.

For the middle market, global M&A was down 26% from last year, according to Robert W. Baird. Domestic deals were down 18%, Asian M&A registered a 35% decline and Europe experienced a 45% falloff in mid-market dealmaking.

The story behind the slump is virtually the same everywhere. Uncertainty in the market and a sputtering credit environment have conspired to sink the amount of …