M&A Synergistic Research Based On Network Perspective

M&A is an important social resource allocation activitie, which has important impact on country’s economy and the world economy. Synergy is the positive fuction of M&A, the scholars thought merger synergies mainly from economies of scale and economies of scope and transaction costs. From the beginning of the20th century, scholars have used a variety of economic network theory analysis of economic phenomena, and found the conclusions. Is it possible to use the network’s view to analyze the merger and acquisition activity, to find whether there are other efficiency resources except the economies of scale, economies of scope and transaction costs? Synergies with the network theory can explain economies of scale, economies of scope and transaction cost theory can not explain the phenomenon? Whether can use the network theory to analysis the synergy which can analysis the phenomena that the economies of scale, economies of scope and transaction cost theory can’t analysis. Therefore, this paper attempts to use the network theory to analysis the M&A synergy from a network perspective.This paper analyzes the economic network formation and evolution, from network flows, nodes communicate cost and network topology three different factors to analyze the economic efficiency sources of the economy network and according to sources of the economic efficiency of the network divided the economy network synergy into structural synergy and communication synergy and path synergy.The definition of economic network is the network which economic entities as nodes were connected by economic relationships. Though the research of the formation and evolution of the economy network, analysis the resources of the economy network efficiency from three aspects. There are two kinds cost that were path cost and node cost. The entities can cut the path cost through find the shortest path, and cut the node cost through decrease the numbers of intermediate nodes or decrease the single node cost.Analysis of three characteristics of economy network prove the economy network were uneconomic when there are Matthew effect, Growth effect and non-rational economic man assumptions. To decrease the uneconomic of economy network, this paper defined the economy network coordinator which has the ability to coordinate the whole network to max the benefit of the economy network. M&A is an important way to change the structure of economy network. There are three kinds M&A synergistic, which are M&A structure synergistic, M&A path synergistic and M&A communicate synergistic. The economy network coordinator can play a catalytic role in M&A transactions, and also can hinder the occurrence of M&A transactions too.Analysis the example of the U.S. rail network formation and evolution, to prove that America’s rail network were fragmented small network first, through the merger between the railroad companies, quickly established a large-scale network which have stronger connectivity. The example shows how to obtain the structure synergistic, path synergistic, and communicate synergistic through M&A. And U.S. rail network were uneconomic when there are Matthew effect, Growth effect and non-rational economic man assumptions. The economy network coordinators of U.S. rail network play a good role to max the whole network benefit. And give some advises to China Railroad network.