October 4 (SeeNews) - Lorimer Ventures Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Emerging Europe Growth Fund II managed by Horizon Capital, has sold its remaining 22.7% stake in Moldova-based Purcari Wineries [BSE:WINE] via an accelerated book building process.
Vasile Tofan, who has led the Purcari investment on behalf of EEGF II since 2012, will remain as chairman of the board of Purcari going forward, Purcari said in a statement filed with the Bucharest Stock Exchange, BVB on Thursday.
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"We understand the need for private equity funds to exit, in particular after a nine-year holding period, though we welcome Horizon Capital as shareholders from future funds, should the opportunity arise. As founder and CEO of Purcari, I welcome the blue-chip institutional investors who have acquired this stake and look forward to delivering value and returns to all of our shareholders in the years to come," Purcari Wineries founder and CEO Victor Bostan said.
Horizon Capital, a private equity firm with over $850 million (776 million euro) under management, has been a shareholder in Purcari since 2010 via EEGF II, its $370 million vintage 2008 fund.
Founded in 1827, Purcari Wineries Plc is one of the largest wine and brandy groups in the CEE region. The group manages over 1,392 hectares of vineyards and operates four production platforms in Romania and Moldova. Purcari is the leader in the premium wine segment in Romania, with a 25% segment share, and the largest wine exporter from Moldova, delivering to over 40 countries.
In February 2018, the group listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.
Its shares were trading flat at 21 lei on Friday on the BVB as at 1304 CET.
($= 0.9132 euro)