Groupe Bollore has announced that it has raised its stake in media and communications company, Aegis, to 25.05%, just above the 25% mark that allows a blocking minority in the company.
According to industry reports, Vincent Bollore’s group bought 735,223 shares in Aegis on Friday, giving the French entrepreneur the largest shareholding in the UK media firm.
Bollore’s latest share purchase coincides with an announcement made on Friday that global advertising company, WPP was withdrawing from the Aegis bidding war after Aegis turned down an offer from Sir Martin Sorrell’s company. Private equity firm, Hellman & Freidman withdrew at the same time (see WPP And Hellman & Freidman To Withdraw From Aegis Bid).
The end of last month saw WPP given a four week deadline to table a bid for rival Aegis by the UK’s Takeover Panel, with WPP’s chief executive, Martin Sorrell, saying that he was still considering a bid for Aegis, following the company’s third quarter results, which reported a 5% rise in organic growth, with WPP’s own market research unit under performing the market with an increase of only 1% in turnover (see WPP Sees Revenue Rise By 26% In Q3 2005).
Bollore has been steadily increasing his stake in Aegis over recent months, raising his stake from just 6% to the current 25.05%.
Many city analysts expect Bollore, who now is the largest shareholder in both Aegis and Havas, with soon orchestrate a move to join the two company’s, despite Havas’s claims that Bollore’s actions “not be taken as having any bearing on the question of whether or not Havas might participate at any time in any offer for Aegis in any capacity (see Havas Denies Takeover Rumours).”
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