French entrepreneur Vincent Bollore has increased his stake in Aegis pushing his shares up to 20.22% from the 20.13% announced last Friday, furthering industry speculation over his intentions towards the media and communications company (see Bollore Surpasses 20% Share In Aegis).
Bollore has been steadily increasing his presence in Aegis, with the latest purchase made through Financiere Du Loch, controlled by the Havas chairman.
Several other firms are believed to be interested in Aegis, with WPP confirming it is considering a bid for the company’s research arm Synovate earlier this month (see WPP Confirms Bid For Aegis).
Last week saw Publicis announce that it would not pursue a bid for Aegis, ending its interest in the firm which kick-started speculation over a sale last month (see Publicis Backs Down From Aegis Take-Over).
So far Bollore has denied take-over rumours, with Havas distancing itself from speculation over its chairman’s intentions towards Aegis (see Havas Denies Takeover Rumours).
Despite this, Robert Lerwill, chief executive officer of Aegis said there is a “certain logic” to a partnership in media with Havas (see Lerwill Says There Is Logic To Partnership With Havas).
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