October 17 (SeeNews) - International private equity fund ADM Capital said on Tuesday it has agreed to sell its full majority stake in Romania's Brikston Construction Solutions to Austria's Wienerberger for an undisclosed sum.
The completion of the transaction is subject to approval by the competition authority. Meanwhile, the two companies will continue to conduct their businesses separately, ADM Capital said in a statement.
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ADM Capital acquired a 98% stake in Brikston in July 2014, through its CEECAT Recovery Fund launched in 2011.
"This transaction marks a milestone in the growth of ADM Capital’s European business showing our proven ability to execute sound investments, achieve strong valuation growth and realize exits in the Balkan region leaving behind a stronger and healthier business after our investment," ADM Capital partner Anthony Stalker said.
Established in 1967 as a state entity and privatized in 1994, Brikston serves the Romanian construction industry with a wide product portfolio consisting of hollow bricks, full bricks, facade and decorative products in various colors and dimensions. Headquartered in Iasi, in eastern Romania, the company generated sales of around 16 million euro ($18.8 million) in 2016 with its large distribution network targeting most of Romania as well as exports to neigbouring Moldova and Ukraine.
"The intended acquisition of Brikston is an excellent opportunity to broaden our local business, especially since Brikston is active in a region of the country where we are not yet present with a production facility," Heimo Scheuch, CEO of Wienerberger, said in a separate statement. "The company can be quickly integrated into the existing plant network, ideally complements our geographic presence in Romania and strengthens our local business."
Wienerberger has been present in Romania since 1998 and is one of the major building materials producers in the country.
Since 2014, ADM Capital has improved Brikston's operating profit by more than 60% during its three years of ownership.
Founded in 1998, ADM Capital has invested in emerging markets across 20 countries. With over 50 people in local offices including Almaty, Istanbul, London, Moscow, Kiev, and Hong Kong, ADM Capital’s assets under management are now over $1.3 billion.
ADM Capital’s Emerging European business is operated under the CCL Capital umbrella. CCL Capital is in the process of launching two new funds in the Balkan and Turkey regions, namely CCL CEECAT Fund II and CCL SEE-Turkey SME Lending Facility.
($=0.8502 euro)