Aegis Confirms Talks with Ipsos are 'Exclusive'

The Board of Aegis Group has confirmed that its talks with Ipsos about the possible sale of Synovate are 'exclusive', following a report in the UK press that it had received an expression of interest from private equity group Cinven.

Earlier this month, Aegis revealed that discussions were taking place with Ipsos about the sale of Synovate for around £500m.

However, on Friday, UK paper The Daily Telegraph reported that Cinven had asked Aegis if it would be willing to enter discussions with other parties about the sale, if talks with Ipsos break down.

Today, Aegis said in a statement that talks with Ipsos regarding the Synovate sale had moved to an 'exclusive basis', although it added the usual proviso, 'There can be no certainty that any agreement will be reached'.

Web sites: www.aegisplc.com , www.synovate.com and www.ipsos.com .