VIN MURRIA's AdvancedAdvT pushed back against M&C Saatchi's suggestion that it seek US regulatory clearance yesterday as the hostile takeover talks continue to heat up.

M&C said on Monday evening that it was in the "best interests" of shareholders to "remove any uncertainty with respect to the consequences of foregoing appropriate regulatory filings in the United States". It urged the investment vehicle to issue a filing with the US Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS) like its rival bidder Next Fifteen had done.

However, in an announcement yesterday, Murria appeared to defy M&C's suggestions and said: "ADV reiterates that it has now received all mandatory regulatory clearances to proceed with its Final Offer."

It added that it had taken the advice given about what regulatory clearance was needed for a takeover and noted: "M&C Saatchi in both its defence circular and yesterday's announcement, any

CFIUS filing is voluntary."

The London-listed AdvancedAdvT confirmed that it was pushing forward with an all share offer of 209.4p per share for the advertising titan. Murria, who holds a 22.3 per cent stake in M&C along with her investment vehicle, said this was "notably higher" than Next Fifteen's of 198.3p per share. This could present a potential roadblock for

Next Fifteen's success moving forward.

M&C previously snubbed both Next Fifteen and AdvancedAdvt offers back in June, stating that each of them undervalued the company and its potential for growth. This has been largely influenced by respective share price fluctuations, which could still send the value of Next Fifteen's offer up further.

There is no date set for the M&C shareholder vote as it depends on the outcome of the regulatory filings for the firms.

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