AXA hands its regional media brief to OMD

According to sources, the pitch included all media planning and buying duties across eight markets. Havas is understood to have retained the business in Japan.

AXA currently works with a number of agencies in the region including MPG and Maxus, both of which were said to have also pitched for the account. “One of the main reasons for the pitch was to align the brand on a regional basis,” said a source.

OMD will roll out the business in two phases. The first phase will launch from Singapore from May, while the second phase will move to North Asia shortly afterwards. It is understood that there is no set time frame for the business.

The OMD win will be a blow for Havas’ MPG, which handles AXA’s estimated $400 million global business. It was rumoured last year that AXA would align this business in Asia to MPG.

Leng Sooi Cheah, marketing head of AXA in Asia, said at the time that the pitch process would be “fair” and MPG would have to submit credentials to prove it was the right choice for each local market.

AXA, which is headquartered in Paris, was ranked 73 in the 2009 Fortune 500 list. Last year, the company announced profits of $4.7 billion.