Deals in the technology and telecoms industry have returned to pre-recession levels this year, thanks to a number of big acquisitions such as AT&T’s $39bn purchase of T-Mobile. After two years in the doldrums, the value of merger and acquisition activity in the sector is close to levels last seen in 2008.

Deal volumes reached $323.3bn in the first eight months of the year, according to Dealogic, the data provider. That is up 19 per cent from the same period last year and close to the $338.8bn reached by August 2008, just before the global banking crisis put transactions on hold.

Bankers said that technology mergers were being driven by the accelerating pace of change in the industry. Two of the largest IT inventions in history, the PC and the mobile phone, are merging into the smartphone, and companies are racing to adapt, said Guido Mengelkamp, head of technology banking, Emea at Citigroup.