Advisory giant Teneo valued at £1.7bn in fresh deal Business Advisory firm Teneo has received fresh backing from a top Liechtensteiner buyout firm valuing it at $2.3bn (£1.73bn), in a deal that suggests the malaise afflicting the world’s largest holding companies and consultancies is not extending to more specialist or diversified firms. LGT Capital Partners is backed by Liechtenstein’s royal family and has over $100bn [...]
Steven Bartlett: Dragons’ Den star quits PR agency he owns Business Dragons’ Den star Steven Bartlett has stepped down as a director of a PR agency he bought three years ago. The Diary of a CEO podcast host’s company, Flight Story, acquired London-based R Agency in 2022 for an undisclosed sum. The firm was set up by Rebecca Ridge in 2013 and has worked with the [...]
Are we witnessing the slow death of advertising holding companies? Media The feted founder of AKQA, Ajaz Ahmed, has launched a new agency that promises to take on the “slow, bureaucratic” ad groups that since the pandemic have have been labouring under stagnant revenues and falling share prices. Ali Lyon asks: “Are those holding companies on borrowed time?” Ajaz Ahmed is not a man to shy [...]
Former Wales First Minister Carwyn Jones joins City of London PR firm January 10, 2025 Former First Minister of Wales Carwyn Jones has been hired by a City of London PR firm. Lord Jones, who was made a life peer at the end of 2024, has been hired by NorthPoint Strategy as a senior counsel. NorthPoint Strategy’s clients include Polygon, UK Cryptoasset Business Council, Andreessen Horowitz and CEO Club Ukraine. [...]
Omnicom and IPG staff fret for their future after $13bn mega merger December 12, 2024 Omnicom and IPG sent shockwaves through the advertising sector when they announced a $13bn merger on Monday. Ali Lyon looks at what the deal means for the firms’ agencies, staff and the ad industry as a whole. Advertising, according to Mad Men’s Don Draper, is based on one thing: happiness. Happiness, the protagonist of the [...]
Teneo secures £77m loan for first dividend payout October 13, 2024 Public relations firm Teneo is borrowing up to $100m (£76.5m) to pay its private equity owner and staff their first dividend. The company, which has City-based UK offices, approached lenders for the financing last week that is earmarked to fund dividend payouts, according to analysts at research firm Creditsights. However, sources close to Teneo said [...]
PR takeovers are all the rage as private equity piles in July 3, 2024 Jess Jones takes a look at why M&A activity in the PR sector is on the rise, and asks whether it will continue
US lobby group acquires London’s Pagefield in £30m deal June 7, 2024 London-listed Public Policy Holding Company, has expanded into the City after acquiring cross-party public affairs advisory business Pagefield
Alastair Campbell’s PR agency holds back bonuses after Qatar’s late payment May 13, 2024 A top London PR agency that counts Alastair Campbell as a senior consultant was forced to delay its staff bonuses after the Qatari government was late paying millions of pounds of fees.