Publicis Announces Purchase of Saatchi

France’s Publicis joined the top league of the world’s advertising industry as it announced the acquisition of Britain’s Saatchi & Saatchi for $1.92 billion in stock and said it was still hungry for acquisitions. The deal will form the world’s fifth-largest advertising group, with a market capitalization of $6.3 billion, and give Publicis vital access to the U.S. market, where Saatchi & Saatchi does half its business. Publicis Chairman Maurice Levy said the combined group, to be called Publicis Groupe, would be able to grow significantly, including through more large purchases. The merger also transforms Saatchi from a company whose two biggest clients, household and beauty products firm Procter & Gamble and auto maker Toyota, represented 35% of its revenue. No single advertiser will now account for more than 5% of the merged company’s revenue. Client conflicts are avoided because the Saatchi and Publicis agency networks will remain separate, Levy said.