Ad giants flirt with merger as industry braces for upheaval

PARIS: Havas is in serious talks about taking a stake in WPP, a deal that would create the world’s second-largest advertising network and send shockwaves through an industry already reeling from mega-mergers.

The French advertising group is exploring options including a minority stake or strategic partnership with its British rival, according to multiple industry sources. One senior executive described the discussions as “very serious”, centred on how to value a company whose share price has cratered 65 per cent since the start of 2025.

The talks come as Omnicom prepares to close its $13.5 billion acquisition of Interpublic group later this month, creating an industry behemoth with revenues exceeding $20 billion. That deal has lit a fire under the rest of the sector, with executives scrambling to find scale in a business battered by tech platforms, consulting firms, and clients demanding more for less.

For WPP, once valued at £24 billion in its 2017 heyday, the interest comes at a desperate moment. New chief executive Cindy Rose has called the company’s recent 8.4 per cent quarterly revenue decline “unacceptable” and enlisted McKinsey to conduct a strategic review. The company’s market capitalisation has shrivelled to just £3.1 billion, and eight hedge funds are shorting its stock.

Havas, by contrast, is riding high after spinning off from Vivendi in December 2024. The company posted record net revenue of $2.3 billion for the first nine months of 2025 and has been hunting for deals. Chief financial officer and chief operating officer François Laroze told investors in October that Havas “would consider” strategic partnerships, including with Japan’s Dentsu.

The French group has form. In September it launched a joint venture with Horizon Media to manage $20 billion in bookings. And history suggests the Bolloré family, which controls Havas, likes to play the long game. In the mid-2000s, Vincent Bolloré bought a stake in Aegis Group with merger ambitions, though that deal never materialised.

Private equity firms Apollo and KKR have also been sniffing around WPP’s carcass, though sources played down the likelihood of formal bids. Apollo looked at the business last year but told reporters it is “not in discussion or considering a bid”. KKR, which bought WPP’s FGS Global last year, declined to comment.

Rose and chairman Philip Jansen tried to steady investor nerves this week by purchasing 50,000 shares each, a combined £287,000 bet on their own company. Under UK corporate governance rules, such purchases cannot occur during formal merger talks, suggesting any Havas discussions remain preliminary.

Both companies declined to comment on what they called “speculation”. But if the deal goes through, it would mark another seismic shift in an industry where survival increasingly means getting bigger or getting out. WPP may be down, but it isn’t quite out and Havas appears ready to pounce.