If Gordon Gekko, the iconic corporate raider in the film Wall Street, were still doing deals today he would probably say the current crop of raiders and bankers were wimps who did lunch. Even the real-life bankers from the 1980s glory days of hostile takeovers who are still active, such as Bruce Wasserstein and Eric Gleacher, probably find the takeover game a little tame.
In the past few years the hostile takeover â free market capitalism at its most rampant â has effectively disappeared. Less than 0.3% of all deals are hostile, representing just 2% of deal value.
