Matthew Freud takes stake in M&C Saatchi

Matthew Freud has bought a 3.3 per cent share in advertising agency M&C Saatchi in his own name.

Freud (pictured) runs the PR company Freud Communications and is married to Rupert Murdoch’s daughter, Elisabeth. Publicis Groupe has a 50.1 per cent stake in the PR company.

M&C Saatchi was set up as in independent in 1995 by Maurice and Charles Saatchi, who founded Saatchi & Saatchi. S&S is also owned by Publicis.

M&C Saatchi clients include COI Communications, GlaxoSmithKline and RBS Group. The agency’s European chairman Moray MacLennan was recently promoted to the newly created position of chief executive of M&C Saatchi worldwide advertising network.

UK chief executive Tim Duffy took up the European chairman role.

Freud Communications also bought the ad agency dfgw in April 2007 and folded it into its own operation.

Freud Communications and M&C Saatchi have worked on the anti-obesity campaign Change4 Life.