French advertising and media network Havas is in advanced talks for a controlling stake in the Sam Balsara-led Madison Group at an estimated valuation of Rs 1,000 crore, multiple sources have told FE.
Balsara is looking to offload about 70-75% stake in Madison at a valuation which is double of his ask of Rs 500 crore in 2015 — the last time he had initiated conversations with advertising networks such as WPP and Dentsu for a 75% stake in his agency — sources in the know said.
Since then, Balsara, who launched Madison in 1988, and his daughter, Lara, have maintained that they are open to partnerships with like-minded players if the terms of the agreement align with the interest of their clients and employees. The Madison Group is among the country’s largest independent advertising and media networks. Its clients include Marico, Asian Paints, Bajaj Electricals, ITC, and Mahindra.
On Tuesday, calls and text messages to Balsara and his daughter as well as the Havas Group elicited no response till press time. Havas Group chairman & CEO Yannick Bollore is currently on an India visit and has signalled that his network, which is the fifth largest in the world, is open to aggressive acquisitions in the country, which is a strategic market for the group.
Sources in the know say that the Havas Group may look at a few options including picking up a minority stake of around 35-40% in Madison before gradually increasing its stake in two-to-three years. The option of picking up a controlling stake of 51% and then increasing it over a year or two is also on the table, sources said.
If the deal materialises, it would mark an end for an Indian group that has held fast to its independence despite growing consolidation in the overall advertising and media market. At the global level, agency networks Omnicom and IPG are merging, which has implications for India too, since their agency brands including McCann, FCB and Mullen Lowe Lintas on the IPG side and DDB Mudra, TBWA and BBDO, are all known for their creative prowess. Rival networks such as WPP and Publicis Groupe have also consolidated their operations over the past few years.
For Havas, the possible acquisition of Madison will give it a leg-up in a market where it has made smaller acquisitions in the past few years, including buying an independent digital agency called Pivotroots or picking up event management company Shobiz or acquiring healthcare agency Sorrento, design agency Think Design and PR agency PR Pundit.
CCI approves Omnicom’s acquisition of Interpublic Group
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the proposed acquisition of The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (IPG) by Omnicom Group Inc., clearing a key regulatory hurdle for the global advertising industry’s most significant consolidation in recent years.The approval, sought in March 2025, follows a comprehensive review of the transaction’s impact on competition within India’s advertising, marketing, and communications sectors. With the Indian nod now in place, the merger has secured regulatory approvals across several key markets, including China, Colombia, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. First announced in December 2024, the deal valued at $13 billion remains on track to close in the second half of 2025.