Ascendant JP Morgan Chase has knocked Goldman Sachs out of first place in the race for mergers and acquisitions, the Wall Street Journal reports. Dealogic, a merger data provider, says Goldman advised some 295 deals totaling $755.6 billion last year, as compared to JP Morgan’s 350 deals for $818.2 billion. A huge lender, JP Morgan can trump rivals in today's tight credit environment by financing deals.
Goldman retains its spot atop the Thomson Reuters ranking, which counts warrants and options within deal values. But the Dealogic rating represents another blow to Goldman, which already lost prestige by giving up its investment banking business model. Goldman had held its top ranking for 7 straight years. (More Goldman Sachs stories.)