Havas Chairman Increases Shares in Aegis

Vincent Bolloré, Chairman of French advertising group Havas, has increased his stake in the Aegis Group, which owns Synovate, from 6 to 8.04%. The move comes amid speculation about the future of Aegis, following last week's announcement that the French Publicis Groupe was in talks about buying the company.

Bolloré, the biggest shareholder in Havas, raised his stake in Aegis in two separate transactions - buying 15 million shares on Monday and three million yesterday. Analysts say it is not yet clear whether Bolloré is stepping up to make a bid for Aegis.

Publicis admitted last week that it has been in talks about buying Aegis, but stressed that these are at a very early stage (www.mrweb.com/drno/news4601.htm ). Omnicom, the world's largest advertising group, has signalled that it is not interested in making a bid for Aegis, while WPP, another major media buyer, has not yet declared any interest.

Aegis, which recently announced a pre-tax profit rise to £36.9m from £35.4m last year, is online at www.aegisplc.com . Publicis, which also owns ZenithOptimedia, is online at www.publicis.com . Havas is online at www.havas.com.

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.