In Serbia, in a little more than a month, four domestic companies have been sold to foreign companies.
This pace of acquisitions in these areas has not been recorded since the first half of 2021. Like then, the companies that were bought are not economically insignificant or small.
E-commerce and betting
It all started at the end of August, when Big Bang, the largest Slovenian electronics retailer, signed an agreement to purchase the 100% Serbian online store BC Group, which, last year, generated 35 million euros in revenue. Big Bang has announced that, in the next five years, they want to increase BC Group’s revenue to over 90 million euros.
In a surprise move, MaxBet, one of the leading omnichannel companies for betting and games of chance in Serbia, sold 51 percent of its ownership to Flutter for 141 million euros. Flutter announced that the acquisition agreement allows them to buy 49 percent of the company by 2029 under the same conditions.
Orban’s son-in-law and logistics
In late September, the French business and technology consultancy Capgemini bought HDL Design House from Serbia, which is engaged in the design and verification of silicon chips.
The transaction value was not disclosed, but it is presumed it is not small, because HDL is an established company, founded over 20 years ago and has about 300 highly skilled engineers with significant experience in delivering advanced custom chip designs for multiple industries.
The last in the series is the purchase in the logistics segment. Waberer’s Group, the Hungarian logistics giant, has acquired a majority stake of 55% in Serbia’s MD International (MDI). The value of the transaction was not disclosed either.
The most interesting thing about this acquisition is that Waberer’s owner is the son-in-law of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
Let’s not forget Jugoinspekt
We shouldn’t forget the privatization of Jugoinspekt Beograd, a joint-stock company majority-owned by the state, which has been controlling the quality of food, energy, ores, textiles, leather and other products for decades, is also underway.
This news surprised the public and business sectors in Serbia because there is always a possibility of corruption when it comes to quality control.
(Bonitet, 12.10.2023)
https://bonitet.com/vruca-jesen-u-srbiji-prodate-cetiri-domace-firme/
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