Adds approvals for Royal Mail and Slovenske Elektrarne deals, Metro delisting)
April 3 (Reuters) - Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky is pressing on with his buying spree in Europe, after securing regulatory approval for his takeover bid for Royal Mail.
Kretinsky, 49, a former investment bank lawyer who built one of Europe's largest energy groups, Energeticky a Prumyslovy Holding (EPH), has been diversifying into retail, media and other areas.
His net worth stands at $9.3 billion, according to Forbes.
Kretinsky operates through various investment vehicles, including EP Group and VESA Equity Investment. The latter has a portfolio valued of more than 3 billion euros ($3.1 billion), according to its website.
Here is a summary of some investments by firms controlled by Kretinsky and his long-term business partner, Patrik Tkac:
EPH
Kretinsky holds slightly over 50% in EPH through its parent EPCG, which owns scores of energy companies across western and central Europe.
EPH is "part of the process" in the sale of Uniper, a source familiar with the matter said on Jan. 20, declining to be identified because the talks are confidential.
On Dec. 19, EPH signed a deal to acquire Italian group Enel's stake in Slovak electricity producer Slovenske Elektrarne, which the European Commission approved on March 26.
The energy business of EPCG reported a combined core profit (EBITDA) of 7.3 billion euros for 2023.
POSTAL SERVICES
International Distributions Services
Britain cleared EP Group to buy the Royal Mail parent in a 3.57 billion pound ($4.35 billion) deal on Dec. 16, after securing commitments that the government said would protect one of the world's oldest postal services.
EP Group said on April 3 the takeover had cleared all regulatory conditions and the offer may become or be declared unconditional by April 30.
PostNL
Kretinsky had accumulated a 31.4% stake in the Dutch mail and package delivery group through VESA, a regulatory filing showed in November 2022.
Quadient
Kretinsky invested 1 billion Czech crowns ($40.95 million) in November 2023 to buy a stake in the French mailroom equipment company. VESA owned 15% of the voting rights as of June 2024, the French markets regulator AMF said.
RETAIL
Unieuro
French retailer Fnac Darty and Ruby Equity Investment, both linked to Kretinsky via VESA, on Dec. 12 reached 96.7% of the share capital of the Italian consumer electronics retailer, which they took private in early January.
Casino
Kretinsky's Casino buyout consortium said in February 2024 that the Paris commerce court had approved its plan to bail out the debt-laden French retailer under an accelerated protection procedure.
Following the deal, the consortium owned 53.73% of Casino shares as of May 6, LSEG data showed.
Fnac Darty
VESA is the largest shareholder of the French retailer, according to data from French markets regulator AMF. VESA owns 29% of Fnac Darty's voting rights, the investment vehicle's website said.
Foot Locker
VESA owns 12.3% voting rights in the U.S. sportswear and footwear retailer.
Metro
German retail group said on February 4 it had signed an agreement with EPGC, its largest shareholder with a 49.99% stake, for it to buy all the remaining shares and take the company private.
Sainsbury's
VESA has a 10.06% stake in the British supermarket group, LSEG data showed.
MEDIA
Editis
France's Vivendi agreed in June 2023 to sell its publishing business Editis to International Media Invest, a unit of Kretinsky's Czech Media Invest (CMI). Vivendi said in November 2023 it had received 653 million euros after finalising the sale.
Elle, Marianne
Kretinsky also owns several French titles via CMI, such as Elle and news magazine Marianne, according to the CMI website.
OTHER
Thyssenkrupp
The German industrial conglomerate said in May 2024 its supervisory board had approved a planned sale of 20% of its steel division to Kretinsky.
Thyssenkrupp last April said the parties were also in talks about the acquisition of a further 30% stake, aiming for a 50-50 joint venture.
DoDo
Logistics firm DoDo, which provides fast delivery services to customers in e-commerce, retail and food delivery, said in May 2022 that Kretinsky would inject 60 million euros into the group over two years to support its international expansion.
West Ham
Kretinsky's 1890s Holdings group has a 27% stake in the English Premier League soccer club, according to the club's website, in addition to his ownership of the leading Czech team, Sparta Prague.
($1 = 0.9692 euros) ($1 = 0.8203 pounds) ($1 = 24.4190 Czech crowns)
(Compiled by Diana Mandiá, Jan Lopatka, Jason Hovet, Alessandro Parodi and Gianluca Lo Nostro; Editing by Milla Nissi)
((diana.mandiaalvarez@thomsonreuters.com))
Keywords: KRETINSKY INVESTMENTS/ (FACTBOX)