As "Vreme" learns, the BC Partners investment fund has initiated the process of selling a majority stake in United Group. When "Vremena" asked the executive director of the group, we received neither confirmation nor denial
The capital of large investment funds is nomadic: companies around the world are bought cheaply, developed and sold expensively. That's how investment funds work, that's their job. Thus Salford once bought and then sold the leading Serbian companies Knjaz Miloš, Bambi and Imlek.
When in March 2019 the London-based investment fund BC Partners became the majority partner in the United Group (UG), which includes SBB, television stations N1 and Nova S, the daily newspaper "Danas" and, more recently, the weekly " Radar", it was clear that it would not be forever. The average capital retention of investment funds on one business project lasts several years, the shorter the better.
BC Partners owns a 55 percent stake in United Group, which they bought from the KKR fund for 2,6 billion euros. Dragan Šolak is the minority owner of UG.
Public bidding
As "Vreme" learns from the circles involved in the sale, BC Partners has initiated the process of selling a majority stake in United Group, which primarily operates in the field of telecommunications in Greece, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia. For this purpose, he hired the investment banks Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan.
The goal is to sell the entire ownership package in United Group at once. It is expected that a public tender will be organized for this purpose.
In response to Vremena's inquiry to BC Partners CEO Nikos Statopoulos, we received the following response: "BC Partners declines to comment, but appreciates your contacting us."
Greek portal Naftemporiki writes that the telecommunications company Etisalat from the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Telecom are interested in the purchase. Last year, Saudi Telekom, through its company TAWAL, bought the telecommunication towers owned by the United Group in Bulgaria, Croatia and Slovenia.
The Greek media previously wrote that if they do not find a buyer for the entire stake in United Group, BC Partners is considering selling only the Greek media company and the local operator Nova.
Afraid of media darkness
The sale of a majority stake in United Group for Serbia could have political consequences. The Serbian government continuously attacks the media operating in Serbia as part of the United Group.
For years, the United Group has been warning that because of this, the government is illegally using various machinations to hinder the business and expansion of the cable operator SBB, which broadcasts television stations N1 and Nova S, which the state president, Aleksandar Vučić, regularly calls out.
The program director of N1, Igor Božić, also spoke publicly about the fears that the owners would give up the media business in Serbia. "Of course there is (fear), when you see the direction everything is going. I'm talking hypothetically, but who is crazy to compete with the state?"
Božić said this for Deutsche Welle in October, when the parliamentary majority "legalized" the fact that the state-owned Telecom was establishing its own media. According to him, "every free screen" bothers the regime.
"The authorities cannot arrest the owners of BC Partners, the investment fund that is the majority owner of UG." That is why the government puts pressure on a man of Serbian origin (Dragan Šolak) who individually has the most shares of UG, harasses him daily through the media with the aim of driving UG out of Serbia," said Božić at the time.
Whoever buys the majority stake in the United group will aim to raise the value of the company before selling their stake, and the progressive government has demonstrated that it will not allow this until the political interference represented by the N1 and Nova S televisions is removed.
Hence the fear that as a result of the sale of the majority package in the United group, the media darkness in Serbia could become much darker.
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A black picture and the breakdown of the rule of law subscribeThe archive of the weekly Vreme includes all our digital editions, since the very beginning of our work. All issues can be downloaded in PDF format, by purchasing the digital edition, or you can read all available texts from the selected issue.
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