The investment banking unit of Kotak Mahindra Bank is planning to expand its business by hiring about 20 bankers, betting that deal activity will rebound next year.

S Ramesh, MD and CEO of Kotak Investment Banking, said the increase would represent a 25% increase in its investment banking division, which currently has 80 people. He said the company was looking to fill analyst-to-director-level positions in financial services, healthcare and technology, where overseas companies such as Amazon and Walmart could look for investment opportunities. Electric vehicles and renewable energy may also be of interest.

“We expect global strategic companies to start firing their engines to consolidate their diversified presence in India,” Ramesh said in an interview in Mumbai. “We expect 2023 to outnumber 2022 mergers and acquisitions.”

India has $168 billion in pending and completed deals this year and is on track to set an annual record, as compiled by Bloomberg show. HDFC Bank Ltd’s $58 billion all-stock takeover of Housing Development Finance Corp led to the surge. Gautam Adani, India’s richest man and the world’s third-richest man, spearheaded the $10 billion acquisition of the local cement business of Holcim AG, the country’s second-largest company.

Another factor that could drive deal flow in India is the willingness of financial investors to write big checks for acquisitions, Ramesh said. He added that a new generation of leading family-owned businesses was also more willing to sell, while conglomerates were looking to consolidate to position themselves for future growth.

On the IPO front, Kotak Investment Banking expects to raise as much as Rs 750 billion ($9 billion) by 2023. According to data compiled by Bloomberg, the company has raised about $5.8 billion this year through its first share sale in India, led by Life, worth $2.7 billion, a product offered by Indian insurers.

According to its website, Kotak Investment Banking provides services including equity and debt capital market offerings, M&A advisory and private equity advisory. The company, through its affiliate, bought a stake in India’s largest hospital chain, Max Healthcare Institute Ltd, in a $1.1 billion block deal for KKR & Co. Kotak was also one of 10 advisers to manage the LIC IPO in May, the largest IPO in Indian history.