Advanced M&C Saatchi AdvancedAdvT Solve the bid for cash | Business News

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The quoted bidding car seeking to acquire M&C Saatchi has presented a new offer that includes a partial cash alternative to investors in a London-listed ad pool.

Sky News has learned that AdvancedAdvT, backed by tech entrepreneur Vin Murria and serial deals group Marwyn, submitted a revised proposal to M&C Saatchi’s board late last week.

The new offer includes about 40 pence per share in cash, city sources said, a shift from the initial all-share offer.

The recent development underscores the ongoing controversy over the future of one of the most popular names in the advertising industry.

Analysis: M&C Saatchi shares surged as Vice President Vin Murria leads the acquisition move

Shares in M&C, which was co-founded in 1995 by Saatchi brothers Morris and Charles, were boosted Friday when it announced that the city’s watchdog had suspended an investigation into its accounting practices.

The agency has been operating for the past two weeks, with its independent directors saying that the original offering from AdvancedAdvT – which was structured as a stock exchange merger – failed to “craft an alternative strategy for the benefit of the company’s stakeholders beyond the initial change of control of M&C Saatchi”.

“Furthermore, the proposal does not reflect the value of the business and its future prospects and will disproportionately transfer the value of equity from M&C Saatchi shareholders to AdvT shareholders,” M&C said in a January 7 statement.

Ms Murria, who is also Vice President of M&C, has a separate stake in the business and wants to combine it with AdvancedAdvT in order to “create digitally focused data, analytics and creative marketing businesses with a strong balance sheet and additional management experience transforming businesses at a rapid pace and implementing complementary mergers and acquisitions.” [mergers and acquisitions]”.

Although some commentators have described the M&C offering as a way to make it private, market sources said the opposite is true, as it would become part of a larger listed company.

Marwyn has been a prolific cash-shell innovator and coordinator of takeovers including BCA Marketplace owner WeBuyAnyCar and Entertainment One, owner of Peppa Pig.

It wasn’t clear this weekend how M&C’s largest shareholder, including Invesco, would respond to the partial cash alternative contained in the revised proposal.

M&C may be under pressure to confirm a renewed approach to the stock market on Monday.

Banking sources said they expect M&C to pursue alternative deals by reaching out to other potential bidders in the near future.

Last week, Sky News revealed that M&C Chief Financial Officer Mickey Khalifa was about to resign to join Dept, a rival digital agency owned by private equity firm Carlyle.

The London-listed group later confirmed he had resigned, saying it was for “personal reasons”.

Shares in M&C closed Friday at 175 pence, giving it a market value of about £213 million.

M&C declined to comment on Sunday.

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