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WPP is set to be relegated from the FTSE 100 after nearly 30 years, as the advertising giant struggles to stem an exodus of clients and match the artificial intelligence and data capabilities of rivals.

WPP, once the world’s largest advertising group, has seen its market valuation plummet from around £24bn in 2017 to just £3.1bn.

The company has also seen its share price plunge two-thirds this year and is expected to be relegated from the blue chip index when the next quarterly reshuffle is officially announced after stock markets close on Wednesday afternoon.

WPP has issued two profit warnings this year and Cindy Rose, who took over as chief executive after Mark Read was ousted in June, has launched a strategic review, admitting that the company has “not gone far enough or fast enough in adapting to the evolving needs of our clients”.

Founded in 1985 by Sir Martin Sorrell, who built a global advertising powerhouse out of a small, Kent-based maker of wire baskets, WPP has been in the FTSE 100 since 1998.

“I was in the room with Sorrell when the business entered the FTSE 100 … the jubilation,” said Alex DeGroote, a media analyst. “This is a moment, the end of an era really. It is sad; advertising … is an industry where Britain had a global leader. To fall out is pretty ignominious and there is no obvious route back.”

WPP is investing heavily in AI tools but has been slow to adapt to a changing market and is being heavily outgunned, principally by France’s Publicis Groupe, which took its crown as the biggest ad group in the world by revenue last year.

Given the parlous state WPP is in, analysts believe that Rose may only have a year to turn the business around, or break up the company, which has become a potential takeover target.

British Land, the most valuable company in the FTSE 250, looks set to be promoted to the FTSE 100 to take the spot vacated by WPP.

In September’s reshuffle, housebuilder Taylor Wimpey – led by Jennie Daly – was relegated from the FTSE 100. Daly’s departure, and the relegation of Rose’s WPP, will leave just seven female chief executives in the blue chip index. GSK boss Emma Walmsley and Severn Trent chief Liv Garfield, both longstanding FTSE CEOs, have recently announced their departures.

Over the past four years, BBVA Italy has gradually broadened its range of products, with no fees and an attractive three percent return on its accounts, to build a universal banking offering that now includes lending, mortgages and investment products. By doing so, the bank aims to continue attracting new customers. “We want to keep growing our customer base, but we also want to support the customers we already serve in more aspects of their financial lives. We want to be their primary bank,” said Walter Rizzi, Head of Digital Banking for BBVA in Italy.

To achieve this, BBVA Italy will continue strengthening its mortgage and credit card offerings, while also expanding its investment products, which so far have been limited to certain funds. Early next year, the bank will launch a wider range of ETFs and reinforce its local team with new specialized advisors. Looking ahead to 2026, the bank’s strategy focuses on developing an advisory model that will be accessible to all customers, combining personal support with technology, with artificial intelligence playing a key role in upcoming versions of the app.

Innovation and user experience remain pillars of BBVA’s digital value proposition. “Our approach combines the best of both worlds: the trust and broad range of products of a traditional bank, with the digital experience, agility and competitive pricing of a neobank,” explained Murat Kalkan, Head of Digital Banks at BBVA.

The Head of Digital Banks announced that BBVA is preparing an app integrated with ChatGPT, which will allow users to ask about BBVA’s offering in Italy and Germany directly in the OpenAI assistant, such as account conditions, cards, or savings products. According to Kalkan, this new conversational app concept showcased in Milan will become one of the first financial apps available in the OpenAI Store when it launches in Europe. “BBVA’s digital banks in Italy and Germany are setting new standards for innovation. Bringing BBVA into ChatGPT marks the beginning of a new chapter, one in which AI becomes a daily part of banking, helping customers manage their financial lives in a more natural and intelligent way,” he added.

BBVA brings its technological, innovation and financial capabilities to its digital banks, which, since the launch of BBVA Italy in 2021 and BBVA Germany in June 2025, have become the spearhead of the Group’s organic growth strategy in new markets.