Commentary

No Deal: ADV's Offer To Acquire M&C Saatchi Has Lapsed

An offer to acquire M&C Saatchi by ad-tech company AdvancedAdvT (ADV) lapsed on September 30 after the shareholders of more than 80% of outstanding shares (excluding the shares already held by ADV and its CEO Vin Murria) declined to tender their shares in favor of the deal.

Under the terms of the offer, 90% of outstanding shares were required to be tendered for the deal to go through.

ADV said it was “disappointed” with the outcome.

There is still one offer for the agency on the table, from ad-marketing group Next Fifteen Communications. That bid came in May after Saatchi made clear it considered ADV to be a hostile suitor that agency management urged shareholders to shun, asserting its offer undervalued the agency.

Saatchi leaders initially said they supported the Next Fifteen offer but withdraw support after the latter’s stock sank in response to the offer. Still, both sides are hoping that an acceptable agreement can be put together. Formal discussions are expected later this quarter.

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For now ADV isn’t going away and potentially could interfere with plans for a Saatchi-Next Fifteen hookup. For months it has argued that Next Fifteen’s offer is unacceptable. ADV and its CEO continue to own more than 20% of outstanding Saatchi shares.

Announcing the lapse of its offer in a regulatory filing, ADV added that it continues to believe “changes are required in order to unlock and accelerate…the wider potential of the M&C Saatchi business.”

 

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