Vin Murria given another 4 weeks to offer a bid for advertising giant M&C Saatchi

The investment vehicle in talks to buy M&C Saatchi has been granted a further extension until the end of March to make a ‘put up or shut up’ takeover offer.

AdvancedAdvT previously had until 5pm today to make a definitive proposal for the AIM-listed firm or declare it is walking away, but will now be given another four weeks – though this deadline could be extended again.

Run by technology entrepreneur Vin Murria, it initially submitted a bid of 182.75p per share in early January, before coming up with two different offers later in the month that were rejected.

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Soon afterwards, it came forward with another couple of offers – either 1.939 new AdvT ordinary shares and 40 pence in cash for each M&C Saatchi ordinary share or an all-share offer – both valuing the company at around £282million.

These bids have all been turned down by the advertising agency on the grounds that they undervalued the business, the lack of detail in AdvT’s digital-led strategy and uncertainty over the employment of current staff, amongst other reasons.

After the most recent offers, independent directors at M&C Saatchi said that it was ‘in the best interests of all [its] stakeholders…to continue to engage constructively in discussions.’   

But it added: ‘While the company continues to facilitate access to provide AdvT with the opportunity to make a formal offer to the Company’s shareholders, no revised proposal has been forthcoming.’

Nicknamed ‘Britain’s queen of tech,’ Indian-born Murria founded Computer Software Group in 2002 before selling it five years later to private equity house Hellman & Friedman for £500million.

Afterwards, she set up Advanced Computer Software Group, which provides IT services to the National Health Service and other public bodies. It was eventually bought by investment firm Vista Equity Partners for £765million in 2015.

She has served on the boards of numerous distinguished businesses, including online real estate portal Zoopla, security software manufacturer Sophos, and advertising group Chime Communications. 

The latter company is a rival to M&C Saatchi, which is famous for its work with the Conservative Party and was founded by brothers Maurice and Charles Saatchi in 1995 following a shareholder revolt at the previous agency they co-founded, Saatchi & Saatchi.

Their clients have encompassed some of the world’s most well-known brands, ranging from sportswear giants Adidas and Reebok to Coca-Cola, banking group NatWest, and technology goods manufacturer Samsung.

Until January, the company had been the subject of a two-year investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority following the discovery of accounting irregularities within its UK business. No wrongdoing has been uncovered by the probe. 

M&C Saatchi shares were up 2.3 per cent to £1.80 during the late afternoon on Thursday, meaning their value has grown by around a quarter in the last 12 months.