FTI Consulting appoints Edward Bridges as global head of M&A comms and activism
FTI Consulting, a global management consultancy, has promoted Edward Bridges to the new role of global head of M&A and activism within its strategic communications segment.
Based in London, Bridges will “focus on driving collaboration with leaders and sector experts globally to further strengthen the segment’s holistic M&A and activism communications advisory capabilities,” according to a press release from the Washington, DC-headquartered firm.
As part of the change, managing director Alex May will move into the new role of head of M&A and activism in the UK, working with Bridges and Pat Tucker, who leads M&A and activism in the Americas.
“As the M&A landscape becomes increasingly complex, the need for close collaboration with advisors to inform, counsel, communicate, and optimize the true value of a deal across stakeholders becomes even more important,” Bridges said. “That’s where FTI Consulting has always shown its key strengths — empathy, deep resources, and sector expertise combined with a multi-jurisdictional presence. Together with Pat and Alex, I am excited to partner with my colleagues across the globe to grow our capability in this space and provide our clients with the integrated counsel they need to successfully manage these critical moments for businesses.”
Bridges is a senior managing director who has been at FTI since 1994, overseeing the growth of the firm’s transactions, financial comms, and special situations offerings. Last year he was involved in four deals worth a total value of $36.75 billion.
Bridges specializes in advising firms on developing communications strategies to support capital markets-funded growth. He has led teams that have worked on numerous large equity IPOs, recapitalizations, debt issuances, and restructurings.
Bridges holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from McGill University.
“Corporates are navigating a new world order in today’s era of M&A and activism, with a range of stakeholders exerting influence at every turn,” Tucker said. “The ability of FTI Consulting to bring an integrated set of perspectives to the table from political to financial in a way that really aligns to client success is a true differentiator for our firm. It is a thrill to partner with Ed, Alex, and the full FTI Consulting platform to bring the next generation of support to our clients.”
FTI’s financial communications practice boasts one of the largest cross-border teams in the world, and has worked on some of the largest deals in recent years, including Royal DSM’s merger with Firmenich SA, Schneider Electric’s acquisition of Aveva Group, and UnitedHealth Group’s acquisition of Change Healthcare.
FTI’s transaction comms offering helps clients complete successful deals by delivering investor support and approval, mitigating political risk for regulatory clearance, and setting up for integrations. The activism defense offering leverages insight into media relations, proxy advisory recommendations, investor engagement, and ESG strategy to navigate engagements with activist shareholders and vocal institutional investors.
FTI has more than 7,700 employees globally advising on change, risk, and disputes.