PRESS RELEASE – 27th March, 2018
Leaf has advised the majority shareholders of 8 Matic on the transfer of shares to Artefact, a leading data and AI-based digital marketing agency listed on the Euronext Growth Paris Stock Exchange.
8 Matic is a leading independent Chinese performance-driven digital marketing agency, whose main operations are in Mainland China and Hong Kong. This alliance with Artefact seeks to reinforce its presence in Asia, and particularly in China.
Leaf assisted the sellers with negotiations and drafting of contractual documentation for the transaction.
Founded in 2010 by Pascal Duriez and Joe Chan Kue, 8 Matic, operating under the brand Netbooster, has a presence in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul serving clients based in Europe, the America and Asia. It also has strong partnerships established with the BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent) in terms of inventory, data, tracking and media activation.
Jean-Philippe Engel and Bruno Grangier (partners), led the Leaf team. They were assisted by Charlotte Mantoux.
“Data and AI are changing the retail landscape. This deal shows the importance and maturity of China’s retail industry, where a lot of opportunities are still up for grabs by those who combine good knowledge of Chinese consumers’ expectations and technological excellence”, said Jean-Philippe Engel, lead negotiator for Leaf.
“The combination of our expertise and the extension of our influence on markets undergoing acceleration opens up considerable potential for development and growth. We are now in working order to go faster and further across all APAC markets”, commented Pascal Duriez, CEO of Artefact APAC, former CEO of 8 Matic.
Seller Financial advisor: Yann Poirier
Buyer financial due diligence: SJ Grand (Stephane Grand – Christophe Marquis)
Buyer Counsel: LPA-CGR (Philippe Raybaud – Thibault Willaume)
About 8 matic
8 Matic is a leading integrated performance digital marketing agency, offering SEM, SEO, Web Analytics, Programmatic Display, Social Media, E-Commerce, Creative, Insights & Strategic Planning. 8 Matic is a leading independent programmatic trading desk, helping to develop programmatic media strategies.
About Artefact
Artefact is a digital agency created in 1998. Listed on the Alternext Paris Stock Exchange, Artefact is the largest independent international digital agency. The company has offices across 17 countries, with 1000+ employees delivering three service offers: Data Consulting, Digital Marketing Expertise and Technology Development. It had operated a strategic move towards data and AI in 2017 merging digital expertise and data capabilities.
