The biotech field may see an increase in M&A in 2013, according to a Boston Business Journal report.

Contributing factors include expiring patents on notable drugs (such as the recent expiration of the Lipitor patent and expected 2014 expirations of Cymbalta and Nexium patents) and large drug companies cutting their research and development budgets, with acquisitions as a means to make up for possible lost revenue.

An M&A report from HBM Partners, an investment firm based in the Cayman Islands, concluded that 2012 was a strong year for trade sales of North American and European biotech companies. And according to an Ernst & Young news release, the financial capacity of big biotech to conduct deals increased 61% between 2006 and 2012.

We will continue to track private equity activity in the space in our Deal Tracker.