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Publicis Groupe acquires Malaysian digital agency Arachnid

Saatchi & Saatchi is expanding its presence in Asia-Pacific with the 100% acquisition of digital agency Arachnid in Asia, for an undisclosed sum.

Through the acquisition, Arachnid will be rebranded as Saatchi & Saatchi Arachnid and become aligned with the Saatchi & Saatchi network in Asia-Pacific. It will continue to operate separately from Saatchi & Saatchi Malaysia.

Founded in 1996 in Kuala Lumpur, Arachnid was one of the region’s first digital agencies. Today, it works with blue-chip clients including Toyota, Lexus, Petronas, Dutch Lady, Mini and Reckitt Benckiser.

Saatchi & Saatchi Arachnid will continue to be led by Arachnid’s management team, including Arachnid founder and managing director Chin Weng Keong.

The acquisition will initially see a number of Arachnid’s key personnel join Saatchi & Saatchi’s Singapore office with the bulk of the 60 plus staff, across creative, technology, strategy, social and account management functions, remaining at Arachnid’s Kuala Lumpur headquarters.

“The marriage of Saatchi & Saatchi and Arachnid signifies a major scaling up of digital capabilities in the Saatchi & Saatchi network across the region,” says Saatchi & Saatchi Asia-Pacific chairman and chief executive Chris Foster. “The past 18 months have seen us make significant investments in digital capabilities, particularly in our regional management hub in Singapore, and now through the union with Arachnid’s exceptional expertise and capabilities, we are even better placed to deliver the unreasonable power of creativity for our clients across the full multitude of consumer channels.”

Last month, Publicis made a surprise move in acquiring independent digital agency LBi for $540m.

Jenni Baker, London