It certainly was a wild ride for M&A, that 2020. According to financial data company Refinitiv, by the end of June 2020, global M&A deal value was down 41% year-over-year compared to 2019. It was the slowest first half for deal work since 2013. The second quarter was 25% worse than the first. In total, $1.2 trillion in deals were done. 

The second half was not just a different story, but perhaps a fable from another language located on a different planet.