[Bebenroth and Fay, Vol.4 (Iss11): November, 2017] ISSN: 2454-1907 DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.1098405 Http://www.ijetmr.com©International Journal of Engineering Technologies and Management Research [48] US-CROSS-BORDER ACQUISITIONS BY JAPANESE FIRMS LESSONS TO BE LEARNED FROM THE LATE 1980s Ralf Bebenroth 1 , Fay Chen 2 1 Professor for International Business, Kobe University, Research Institute for Economics and Business Administration (RIEB), Japan 2 Master Candidate at Kobe University Abstract: This research analyzes two Japanese acquisition waves to the US, one from the 1980s and the other recent one, still ongoing today. Both acquisition waves are analyzed by using institutionalization theory and management fashion research to explain these trends. For the 1980s, the numbers of articles related to Japanese acquisitions were counted in two of the leading US-newspapers and parallel ties were found to the number of deals. Compared to the 1980s, the public opinion of Americans against Japanese takeovers becomes positive. While many American in the 1980s saw Japanese firms as a threat, nowadays Japanese direct investment is seen in more favorable ways. However, Japanese firms’ behavior of acquiring US targets does not seem to have changed since the late 1980s. Furthermore, lately not only the number of the deals but also the amount of payment increased (compared to the data of late 1980s). Keywords: Us-Cross-Border; Firms; Lessons. Cite This Article: Ralf Bebenroth, and Fay Chen. (2017). “US-CROSS-BORDER ACQUISITIONS BY JAPANESE FIRMS LESSONS TO BE LEARNED FROM THE LATE 1980s.” International Journal of Engineering Technologies and Management Research, 4(11), 48-58. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.1098405. 1. Introduction Nowadays, a wave of cross border M&A is visible worldwide (Peng 2008). Also many Japanese firms acquired foreign targets with a record high of 635 cases in the year of 2016. Some of the so called mega deals in the last years include SoftBank’s $22 billion acquisition of Sprint in 2013, Suntory’s $16 billion purchase of bourbon maker Beam (in 2015) and Daikin’s $3.7 billion purchase of Goodman, a US-based air conditioner manufacturer (Kahn 2015). A similar wave of Japanese M&A to the US was seen in the late 1980s. While the success of an acquisition depends on its successful post-merger integration (PMI), there have been numerous attempts to determine decisive factors for a successful PMI (e.g., Ellis et al. 2009). This research focuses on two factors, the US public opinion and the Japanese business style.