Mergers and acquisitions in Europe soared in February after a disappointing start to the year, with the value of deals up 80% over the previous month. The rise has come as a report suggesting insider trading remains rife around takeovers has cast a shadow over the sector.

The value of European announced deals rose from €80bn ($105.2bn) in January to €142bn the following month, according to Zephyr, the M&A data provider.