Dentsu Aegis Network acquires a majority stake in Ugam

Dentsu Aegis Network has acquired a majority stake in India-based Ugam, a next-generation data and analytics company serving both business-to-business and business-to-consumer enterprises.

 

Ugam will join Merkle, the performance marketing agency of the Dentsu Aegis Network.

 

With more than 1,800 employees in India, the United States, and Australia, Ugam’s set of solutions are highly complementary to Merkle’s existing capabilities, said a company statement.

 

The business will now become Ugam, a Merkle Company, with Sunil Mirani, co-founder and chief

executive officer of Ugam reporting to Craig Dempster, president, Merkle Americas. Reporting structures for the rest of the management team of Ugam will remain unchanged, as they and the rest of the senior leaders will play a key role in the growth plans of the company.

 

“Ugam is vital to the execution of Merkle’s multi-year analytics strategy of creating a scaled on- and

offshore shared analytics service across Dentsu Aegis Network.” said Craig Dempster, president, Merkle Americas. “With its experienced management team, highly-educated workforce, scale, and vertical market expertise, Ugam will bring high-end analytics capabilities, along with a broad spectrum of analytical decision support. Their focus on the US market and Fortune 500 companies will create many synergies and strengthen our existing relationships, opening opportunities for each of our client portfolios.”

 

Sunil Mirani, co-founder and chief executive officer, Ugam said, “We have found the perfect partner in Merkle. We complement each other’s strengths, with Ugam bringing advanced analytics capabilities at scale, and Merkle bringing a diverse client base with a largely in-country presence. Most importantly, the cultural fit was evident from day one, and the effects will be immensely positive for all our stakeholders – customers, employees, and shareholders. This deal marks a significant milestone in Ugam’s journey, and I look forward to this new phase with renewed vigor.”

 

Alex Yoder, executive vice president, analytics for Merkle added, “As the analytics business becomes increasingly commoditised, the pressure to expand capabilities into predictive and prescriptive methodologies simultaneously intensifies. Merkle’s majority stake in Ugam and its resulting enhanced scale and capabilities will be instrumental as we scale to effectively compete with top analytic consulting firms over the next three to five years.”

 

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