ZAGREB (Croatia), October 29 (SeeNews) – London-based businessman Ivan Bozidar Ivanovic has acquired an 8.7% stake in Croatian diversified group Djuro Djakovic [ZSE:DDJH], the group said.
Ivanovic is a shareholder in the group as of October 25 after acquiring the stake from the government's centre for enterprise restructuring and privatisation, CERP, Djuro Djakovic said in a filing to the Zagreb bourse on Monday.
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CERP adopted a decision to sell the 883,589 Djuro Djakovic shares, equivalent to an 8.7% stake, to Ivanovic in January, the statement said.
According to October 29 bourse data, Croatian businessman Nenad Bakic is the largest shareholder in Djuro Djakovic with a 17.71% stake, followed by CERP with 14.36%.
Last week, blue-chip Djuro Djakovic said it is in talks with creditors, trying to resolve a liquidity crisis which has left it short of funds to pay out the September salaries to employees.
The group and two of its four affiliated companies were unable to pay their workers wages for September due to liquidity shortage.
Some 600 employees went on strike last week, demanding the payment of their wages arrears and the resignation of the management board director.
According to media reports this week, Djuro Djakovic is still in talks on finding financing.
The group swung to a consolidated net loss of 16.2 million kuna ($2.4 million/2.2 million euro) in the first half of the year, from a net profit of 5 million kuna in the like period of 2018.
Its main business lines are manufacturing of equipment for steelworks, industrial and power plants and production of rolling stock and special-purpose motor vehicles.
Djuro Djakovic's shares closed 4.18% lower at 5.04 kuna on the Zagreb bourse on Monday.
(1 euro = 7.4542 kuna)