Croatia's Meritus acquires 51% of Serbian BPO firm Trizma for 2.16 mln euro

The price can increase by up to 612,000 euro, depending on Trizma's business results in 2019, Meritus Ulaganja said in a statement on Tuesday.

Meritus Ulaganja carried out the acquisition via its Zagreb-based subsidiary Meritus Upravljanje.

"The entire management and all employees were retained in the merger and the existing Trizma shareholders will retain an active role in the company," Meritus Ulaganja board chairman Ivan Posavec said in the statement.

"As the first and largest independent BPO company in Serbia, we have had long discussions with potential investors and partners, and have chosen Meritus Ulaganja as our strategic partner for further growth," the head of Trizma, Eldar Banjica, said.

Meritus Ulaganja is the parent company of one of the largest BPO companies in the region, Zagreb-based M+ Group, with key clients in the areas of telecommunications, energy, and transportation, among others.

Following the acquisition of Trizma, M+ Group will do business at six locations (up from the current five) in four countries - Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Serbia, employing more than 2,700 people and providing services to over 150 clients in more than 50 countries, Meritus said.

M+ Group's international clients include Deutsche Telekom, Microsoft, RWE, Bosch, DHL, Siemens, Carlsberg, among others.

Trizma was established in 2002 and provides services to clients from the banking, parcel delivery and other industries from its contact centres in Belgrade and Bosnia's Banja Luka.

Meritus Ulaganja's shares have not yet traded on the Zagreb Stock Exchange since they were listed there on August 8, 2019.

($=0.906360 euro)