Stéphane Préfol

Source: Banijay

Stéphane Préfol

Production giant Banijay has hired a dedicated head of mergers and acquisitions, Stéphane Préfol.

Préfol has spent more than 15 years in the M&A space and joins from Publicis Groupe, where he was associate director.

Banijay said the role would be “dedicated to supporting on the group’s growth trajectory.”

Based in Paris, Préfol will report jointly to Banijay CEO Marco Bassetti and CFO Cédric Brignon. He joins on 6 March 2023.

Préfol started his career in 2006 as an analyst at Wagram Corporate Finance and later joined Kepler Corporate Finance as a senior associate.

In the past year, Banijay has acquired companies such as Beyond International, Belgian scripted producer johnnydepony, Israeli film and TV producer MoviePlus and Italian outfit Grøenlandia.

Bassetti said: “With over 10 acquisitions completed in 2022 alone, it was important for us to have a concentrated position in the team focused purely on M&A. We’ve made no secret of our ambitions for further growth into 2023 and with Stéphane, we can continue to be more effective in broadening our business offering, building our reputation as a go-to for talent both in content and beyond.”