WESTBRIDGE CAPITAL takes majority stake in KOTO

WestBridge took control of Koto, the London-headquartered creative agency, in a management buyout announced on 8 April 2025, the fourth investment from its WestBridge III fund. Koto generated revenue of around £30 million at entry. Founders James Greenfield, Caroline Matthews and Jowey Roden stayed in the business and kept a significant shareholding, while the transaction widened the shareholder base beyond the founding team to include the broader leadership that had built the company. Shawbrook provided a bespoke unitranche facility to fund the purchase. WestBridge set out to support organic growth in Koto’s core US, European and Asia-Pacific markets and to back an acquisition strategy aimed at adding scale, geographic reach and new service capabilities. Chief executive James Greenfield said the agency had spent its first decade building a reputation for brand work with some of the world’s best-known companies. That strategy produced its first deal the following year, with the purchase of Stereo Creative, which took the combined group to 230 people across eight studios, adding San Francisco, Portland and Dubai to its existing locations. JEGI CLARITY acted as exclusive M&A and debt adviser to Koto, with Lewis Silkin as legal counsel and BDO on due diligence.