US-based investment firm KKR has closed its acquisition of Western Balkan cableco United Group (SBB/Telemach) from Mid Europa Partners in a deal reportedly worth about €1bn (US$1.4bn).
NYSE-listed KKR said the closing of the transaction by which the…
US-based investment firm KKR has closed its acquisition of Western Balkan cableco United Group (SBB/Telemach) from Mid Europa Partners in a deal reportedly worth about €1bn (US$1.4bn).
NYSE-listed KKR said the closing of the transaction by which the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) invests €50m (US$) alongside funds affiliated with the investment firm also closes today.
The EBRD, which has lent financial support to United Group since 2004, announced last month that it had increased its exposure to the company with the €50m investment.
United Group executive chairman Dragan Solak said the company is now ready to “accelerate” its plans for the region which include providing a wide range of services at affordable prices.
KKR head of telecoms and technology Henrik Kraft said the deal – the firm’s first direct investment in Central and Eastern Europe – reflects its confidence in the prospects on the company, Solak and his team and the region in general.
KKR agreed last October to buy United Group, which operates in Serbia under the SBB brand and Slovenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina under the Telemach brand. KKR and United Group would not disclose the financial details, however, Mid Europa, which acquired SBB in 2007, said it had tripled its money on investment, noting that it represents the largest private equity exit in the former Yugoslavia. At the time, media reports valued the deal at about €1bn.
KKR has described SBB as the leading pay TV and broadband operator in Southeast Europe, saying it has about 1.7 million cable and satellite TV, fixed and mobile customers across Serbia, Bosnia, Croatia, Montenegro and Macedonia.
