With global investment banking fees at an all-time high in the first half of 2021, four Canadian firms ranked among the top 25 in the overall league tables, according to new data from Refinitiv.

Global equity issuance and M&A activity both set first-half records, driving a similar surge in investment banking fees, which totalled US$79.7 billion through the first six months of the year, up 26% from the same period last year.

Equity underwriting generated US$25.3 billion in fees, which was double the total in the first half of 2020.

Refinitiv said the surge in equity underwriting revenues came amid record issuance in secondary offerings, convertibles and initial public offerings, including special purpose acquisition companies.

At the same time, M&A advisory fees rose by 18% year over year to US$18.3 billion.

Syndicated lending was up 17% compared to last year, while debt underwriting declined by 5% from last year.

JP Morgan remained the top-ranked firm overall in the industry league tables, followed by Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. BofA Securities Inc. and Citi rounded out the top five firms, which accounted for a combined 32% of the total fee pool, up 1.5 percentage points from last year.

Four Canadian firms also ranked in the global top 25, led by RBC Capital Markets in 11th pace, up one spot from last year.

BMO Capital Markets ranked 19th, up from 27th place; TD Securities held on to 23rd place overall; and Scotiabank took 25th spot, up from 29th last year, according to Refinitiv.

The financial sector remained the biggest source of investment banking fees in the first half, accounting for 34% of all global fees, followed by the tech sector and the industrials.