What This Year’s Dealmaking Boom Means for 2026

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Alex Ossola (0:18)

After a roller coaster year for deals, we look at what's in store for 2026

Lauren Thomas (0:24)

Watching Trump and what's going on down in DC is going to continue to be a huge factor in the M&A market.

Alex Ossola (0:33)

Plus, the heirs to a Texas billionaire will pay $750 million in the biggest US tax fraud case ever. And the electricity crisis in Ukraine has left some parts of the country in the dark for days. It's Wednesday, December 24th. I'm Alex Ossola for The Wall Street Journal. We're on a holiday schedule in your feed once a day. And this is What's News, the top headlines and business stories moving the world today.

The estate of billionaire Robert Brockman has agreed to pay $750 million in back taxes and penalties, settling a case that arose from what the US government called the biggest tax fraud charges ever filed against a person. The details were revealed in a US tax court filing yesterday. The IRS had been seeking $1.4 billion, including interest, in the case. Brockman was a wealthy Texas auto software entrepreneur who was known for his penny-pinching ways, staying at budget hotels and eating frozen dinners in his room. He was indicted in 2020 on record-setting tax fraud charges. The government accused him of using a web of offshore entities to conceal more than $2 billion in income. He died in 2022 at age 81 while awaiting trial on the criminal fraud charges, and the civil case continued in tax court after his death. The US said it won't allow a former European Union official to enter the country over his role in a European online content law that the Trump administration says censors Americans. Yesterday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the US would impose visa restrictions on five people. It said were, quote, agents of the global censorship industrial complex. One of those people is Thierry Breton, a French citizen who served as an EU commissioner until last year. The other four people targeted work for organizations that focus on disinformation and hate speech. The European Commission said it condemns the US decision and has requested clarifications. Breton said the US was engaging in a, quote, witch hunt. And in Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky said he would be willing to pull troops out of the eastern region of Donetsk and create a demilitarized free economic zone as part of a potential peace deal, as long as Russia took similar steps to withdraw from areas it controls. Zelensky said yesterday that there would be a referendum on the proposal and other parts of the peace plan, giving the Ukrainian people a vote on the deal. And for Ukrainians, Christmas threatens to be dark, as the country deals with its most severe energy crisis since 2022 Moscow has been attacking the grid on a greater scale, leaving some parts of the country without power for days at a time. Markets will close early today. US stock markets will shut at 1 p.m. Eastern Time and bond markets an hour later. Markets will be closed tomorrow for Christmas Day and they'll reopen for regular trading on Friday. Coming up, the teens juggling high school with founding an AI company and what 2026 looks like for mergers and acquisitions. Those stories and more after the break.

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Alex Ossola (3:59)

In deal news, British oil giant BP has agreed to sell a 65% stake in its Castrol lubricants business to investment firm Stone Peak. The deal values the division at $8 billion. The companies announced the deal today after The Wall Street Journal reported that an agreement was near. And Sanofi is buying vaccine specialist Dynavax Technologies for $2.2 billion. The French pharmaceutical company has been using acquisitions to strengthen its lineup of medicines and vaccines after some experimental drugs missed their goals in clinical studies or were turned down by regulators. In fact, there have been a lot of deals this year, from the merger of Railroads Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern to Google's acquisition of cybersecurity startup Wiz. And there have been big breakups too, like Kraft Heinz splitting into two companies. What's been driving all this activity? And can we expect it to continue next year? I talked about it with WSJ lead deals reporter Lauren Thomas. Lauren, how was this year for deals?