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Tag: Bank of America

  • Starcom India appoints Lalchandani as VP – buying

    MUMBAI: Starcom, a part of Publicis Media India, has, in a significant development, appointed specialist Navin Lalchandani as the vice-president of its media buying operations.

    Starcom, a renowned media communications agency, partners with the world’s leading marketers and new brands, including Airbnb, Bank of America, Kellogg Company, Kraft Heinz, Novartis, Samsung, Visa and more.

    Lalchandani moves from Carat Media Services, Denstu Aegis Group and will steer media buying operations for all offline media, namely television, print, radio and cinema across the Starcom offices of Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore.

    Starcom India Group CEO Mallikarjun Das says, “Navin is talented and versatile and comes with the rich experience of having bought media for some of the largest marketing organisations such as Mondelez, L’Oréal and Vodafone. Navin brings in an amalgamation of buying skills spanning across media and has the smarts to work in Starcom’s data-predicated media product. He will drive a buying culture that is about best-of-class in rates, rigour, fair play and trust.”

    Lalchandani says, “I believe in long-term, sustained partnerships and this has certainly been the case in my career span. I began my career with media planning for Marico and it has been a greatly rewarding and exhilarating journey since then. The decision to join Starcom was easy, considering its body of good solid work, for marquee brands and its reputation of being a future-facing, high-growth agency. In an age of proliferation of channels and offerings, a sound media strategy makes all the difference to business goals. I look forward to delivering genuine value to Starcom’s clients.”

    Lalchandani’s previous spans media buying firms such as GroupM’s Maxus and Madison Media.

  • WWE Studios closes $35 million credit facility with Bank Of America Merrill Lynch

    WWE Studios closes $35 million credit facility with Bank Of America Merrill Lynch

    MUMBAI: Santa Monica, CA-based WWE Studios has closed on a revolving credit facility worth $35 million with Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofAML).  The deal comes after a multi-year successful run by the production company.

     

    With this new arrangement, WWE Studios expects to extend and grow their partnership base, which already includes Warner Bros., Lionsgate and 20th Century Fox.

     

    The proceeds of the facility will allow WWE Studios to execute further on its key strategy for long-term growth, increasing the number of mid-size budgets films, similar to The Call and Oculus, on its slate. The funds will also go toward the expansion of the acquisition slate.

     

    “WWE Studios is an amazing brand with a history of creating content with fascinating characters and storylines. This new facility will provide WWE Studios the capacity to build on the momentum from the last several years by producing and acquiring more branded and genre films.  The various platforms and global reach of both BofAML and WWE creates the perfect collaboration,” said Bank of America Merrill Lynch senior vice president Randy Hua.

     

    “This new relationship with Bank of America Merrill Lynch gives us the opportunity to be involved in higher profile films and expand talent relationships. Our audience craves larger-than-life stories, and we’re looking forward to using this new facility to bring even more of those stories to the big screen,” added WWE Studios president Michael Luisi.

     

    “The credit facility enhances WWE’s financial flexibility and is consistent with WWE’s film strategy and planned investment levels as previously communicated,” said WWE chief strategy and financial officer George Barrios.

     

    WWE Studios most recently launched a new label, Erebus Pictures, with media mogul Gene Simmons, which is set to finance and produce elevated horror movies.

     

    WWE Studios titles include The Call with Halle Berry and WWE Superstar David Otunga, Oculus directed by Mike Flanagan starring Karen Gillan and Katee Sackhoff,  Dead Man Down starring Colin Farrell, Noomi Rapace, Terrence Howard and featuring WWE Superstar Bad News Barrett, The Marine franchise featuring WWE Superstars John Cena, The Miz and WWE Diva Summer Rae, and Scooby-Doo! WrestleMania Mystery, which paired animated versions of WWE Superstars with Scooby and the gang.  Upcoming releases include Incarnate with Blumhouse Pictures starring Aaron Eckhart and featuring WWE Superstar Mark Henry, and a sequel to Scooby-Doo! WrestleMania Mystery starring WWE legend Hulk Hogan.