Chrysalis (CHRY) portfolio company The Brandtech Group has completed the acquisition of Jellyfish, a global digital media and marketing group. CHRY says that the deal creates the number one digital-only marketing group in the world with over US$1bn in revenue, over 7,000 employees, working for eight out of ten of the world’s largest advertisers, and 49 of the top 100. The acquisition follows a period of exclusive negotiations which were first announced by Brandtech in August last year.
Jellyfish was founded in 2005 by Rob Pierre and now has more than 2,000 employees across 38 offices around the world. The company works with some leading global brands such as Google, Netflix, and Uber.
According to CHRY, Brandtech has made the purchase following Jellyfish’s most profitable year yet. At the same time, Brandtech has, for the last four years, significantly outperformed not only the legacy ad holding companies but also the technology platforms, with annual organic revenue growth at an average of more than 30 percent over the four-year period. CHRY adds that Brandtech is also one of CB Insights’ Most Valuable Private Unicorns and was named one of Fast Company’s World’s Most Innovative Companies.
This latest purchase is Brandtech’s ninth acquisition and comes after its July 2022 deal to acquire Acorn-i, the global AI-driven e-commerce SaaS platform and Advanced Amazon Partner. CHRY says that the purchase of Jellyfish solidifies the Group’s position as the next-generation partner for next-generation marketers.
As reported on 4 May 2023, Brandtech comprises 12.2% of the company’s portfolio as of 31 March 2023.