Last night, the Baltic deals of the year for 2026 were announced at the Baltic M&A and Private Equity Forum 2026, held at Hanzas perons in Riga. The awards recognised the most notable transactions completed in the Baltic region over the past year, highlighting deals that have shaped the market through their strategic importance, scale, complexity and innovation.

The annual awards ceremony is traditionally held as part of the Baltic M&A and Private Equity Forum, organised by Sorainen together with Baltic venture capital associations and leading business media. This year, the forum brought together investors, dealmakers, advisers and company executives from across the Baltics and beyond.

Award-winners

The Baltic M&A Deal of the Year is the acquisition of Rimi by Salling Group. The transaction marked one of the most significant strategic acquisitions in the Baltic retail sector in recent years, reshaping the competitive landscape of grocery retail across the region. Other nominees for the M&A deal category were the acquisition of ADB Gjensidige by Ergo International AG, the acquisition of Vilniaus kogeneracinė jėgainė by Quaero Capital, the acquisition of Airwave by Beijer Ref AB, and the acquisition of TopSport UAB by Fortuna Entertainment.

The Baltic Private Equity Deal of the Year is the acquisition of Tele2 AB’s telecom infrastructure assets by Manulife. The deal stood out for its scale and complexity, and highlighted the increasing role of institutional investors with regard to Baltic infrastructure‑related assets. Other nominees for the private equity category included the investment in Medicum by Livonia Partners, the acquisition of INVL by Eesti Keskkonnateenused AS, the acquisition of Polmed by INVL, the acquisition of SC Pehart Tec by INVL and the acquisition of Brolis Defence Group by ETNA.

The Baltic Venture Capital Deal of the Year is Nexos AI raising EUR 30 million in an investment round co‑led by Evantic Capital and Index Ventures. The transaction was among the largest venture capital investments in the Baltic technology sector during the award period, underlining investor confidence in globally scalable Baltic AI solutions.

Other nominees in the Baltic Venture Capital Deal of the Year category were Aerones EUR 54 million investment round led by Activate Capital and S2G, Starship Technologies USD 50 million Series C led by Plural, Pactum AI USD 54 million Series C investment from Insight Venture Management and Sintra AI USD 17 million seed round led by Earlybird VC.

The Baltic Exit Deal of the Year is BaltCaps’ exit from Ridango. The transaction represented a successful exit for Baltic private equity, demonstrating the ability of regional investors to scale companies internationally and realise value through strategic exits. Other nominees: the exit by former investors from ReadyPlayerMe (Wolfprint 3D); the exit from Defendec by Tera Ventures, Ubiquitous Ventures and Sentosa Capital; the exit by Livonia Partners from Glassense; and ZGI Capital’s exit from Echoo Group.

The Baltic Outbound Deal of the Year is the acquisition of Ticketportal by Piletilevi Group. The deal illustrated the growing outbound ambitions of Baltic companies, with Piletilevi Group expanding its footprint beyond the Baltics through a strategically important cross‑border acquisition. Other nominees were the acquisition of Sunrise Poultry Farms by Agrova and the acquisition of C2 SmartLight Oy by Hansab OU.

International panel of judges

The award recipients were selected by an independent pan‑Baltic jury, ensuring a rigorous, transparent and region‑wide perspective. The 2026 awards committee consisted of:

  • Guntars Krols, Partner at EY (Latvia)
  • Linda Skrina, CFO at Livonia Partners (Latvia)
  • Šarūnas Skyrius, Partner at Superia (Lithuania)
  • Rūta Mačiulytė‑Valickienė, Executive Director at LT VCA (Lithuania)
  • Sille Pettai, CEO of SmartCap (Estonia)
  • Madis Lehtmets, Managing Director at EstVCA (Estonia)

The panel of judges selected the winning deals according to a variety of criteria, including the value and strategic importance of the deal for the Baltic region; the level of complexity and innovation; the financing structure; ESG impact; and the involvement of professionals from the region. The nominated deals were made during the period from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026.

About the Baltic M&A and Private Equity Forum

The Baltic M&A and Private Equity Forum 2026 was organised by Sorainen in cooperation with leading Latvian business media house Dienas Bizness. The forum rotates between the three Baltic countries and is organised annually by Sorainen in partnership with Baltic business media (Äripäev in Estonia, Verslo žinios in Lithuania and Dienas Bizness in Latvia) and Baltic venture capital associations. Every year the forum gathers over 200 participants, representing private equity, venture capital funds and investment banking, as well as consultants, lawyers, business executives and owners from the Baltics and beyond. This year’s forum was held on 23 April.