KKR acquires a minority stake in WPP-backed financial communications company FGS Global By Investing.com

©Reuters

By Scott Kanowsky

Investing.com — KKR & Co. LP (NYSE:) announced that it has acquired a minority stake in WPP-backed (LON:) FGS Global in a deal that values ​​the strategic consulting and financial communications firm at nearly $1.43 billion.

Under the terms of the transaction, WPP will remain the majority owner of FGS. Meanwhile, KKR will acquire the stake from Golden Gate Capital, a San Francisco-based private equity group.

FGS Global, which operates from 27 offices worldwide, provides public relations services to over 1,600 clients. FGS was formed in recent years, starting with a 2020 merger of three firms controlled by advertising giant WPP: London-based Finsbury, Frankfurt-based Hering Schuppener, and Washington, DC-based Glover Park Group. The combined group then bought US rivals Sard Verbinnen a year later.

“Our investment in FGS is the latest example of our focus on proprietary, strategic partnership investments, where we provide long-term capital and a global resource network to an entrepreneurial management team alongside a world-class company,” said KKR Co-Head of European Private Equity Philipp Freise in a statement.

The transaction is expected to be completed before the end of the third quarter of this year.