Perseus CEO Says Gold Price Uncertainty Is Keeping M&A Deals Stuck at the Table

Gold’s price swings are now affecting corporate dealmaking, with Perseus Mining’s chief executive saying companies struggle to agree on valuations. 

Craig Jones said mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity remains high, but not many deals are reaching completion.

Gold’s Takeover Wave Hits a Valuation Wall

Reuters noted that elevated bullion prices have driven a string of mergers among producers. Northern Star Resources took over De Grey Mining, and Equinox Gold folded in Calibre Mining.

Several larger deals have stalled, however. Zijin Gold’s planned $4 billion takeover of Allied Gold collapsed before closing. Northern Star also rebuffed an A$38.7 billion approach from Gold Fields.

Perseus itself let its bid for explorer Predictive Discovery lapse last year after rival Robex Resources improved its offer. Jones told Reuters the gold outlook is shaping how companies commit to transactions.

“Companies are trying to work out what gold prices will do before making transaction decisions,” he said.

Boston Consulting Group (BCG) flagged a similar problem across global M&A. It said execution, including bridging valuation gaps, has replaced funding as the main bottleneck.

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A $4,000 Floor Meets a Stronger Dollar Call

Jones explained that disagreements over where gold prices are headed are creating a divide between buyers and sellers.

“Some companies have more aggressive assumptions and some more conservative assumptions,” he stated.

Each company must then decide whether a deal’s risk-reward makes sense, he added. That judgment rests heavily on the gold price, which has swung sharply in 2026.

The precious metal rose about 25% from the start of the year to its late January record, according to TradingView. By mid-July, it had dropped roughly 8% below its January 1 level. Gold prices now sit 4.34% lower for 2026.

The Kobeissi Letter has said 2026 could end as gold futures’ most volatile year in more than 4 decades. Forecasters remain split on where prices go from here. 

Morgan Stanley favors gold over a 12-month view. Amy Gower, its head of metals and mining strategy, sees $4,000 as a strong floor, pointing to steady central bank buying.

ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood leans the other way. She expects a much stronger dollar and argues tighter Fed policy could reverse some of the dollar’s losses against gold.

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