 Archie Berens |
Britain's Hanover Group has acquired Bell Pottinger Middle East and its 14 staffers headed by managing director Archie Berens.
Accountant BDO, which is administering the disposition of the assets of collapsed Bell Pottinger, hammered out the deal with Hanover, which has fees in the $30M range.
Jonty Summers, Hanover Middle East managing director, will head the combined business with Berens moving into the chairman slot.
Hanover founder/CEO Charles Lewington called the Bell Pottinger Middle East unit "a terrific business with a talented, professionally run team which presents a strategic opportunity for Hanover to supercharge its growth in the region.’
Prior to launching Hanover, Lewington was press secretary to former UK prime minister John Major and reporter for the Daily Express.
Hanover, which has offices in London, Dublin and Brussels, has provided corporate and PA counsel to blue-chips such as Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, Sky TV, Tata Steel and Airbus.
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