September 23 (SeeNews) - Romanian farming company Holde Agri Invest said on Monday it has successfully closed its first round of financing, raising 5 million euro ($5.53 million) from local investors and investment funds.
After closing its Series A financing, Holde Agri Invest has 25 shareholders, it said in a press release.
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Vertical Seven Group remains the biggest shareholder with a 25% of stake, while the remaining investors hold between 9% and 0,1% in the business.
The company is currently preparing for the second round of financing, which will be followed by floating of Holde’s shares on the AeRO market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange, it added.
The funding will be directed into the extension of the farming land operated by the company, the purchase of farming equipment and into the development of the team, Holde Agri Invest also said.
"Our mission is to create a locally financed state-of-the-art farm, which can operate at a scale guaranteeing optimal exploitation of land and assets while ensuring significant cost saving and access to the latest innovations. We believe that the Romanian agricultural sector has immense potential. We are confident through technology, proper organization and motivated people, we can truly add value, transform the local rural landscape while generating attractive returns to investors," Holde Agri Invest CEO Liviu Zagan said.
The management is actively seeking opportunities in the south and south-east part of Romania, in order to successively extend the operated farmland. The particular region of Romania was chosen because of the high quality of soil, large area of arable land as well as proximity to Bucharest as well as Danube and Black Sea ports.
By the end of 2020, Holde Agri Invest aims to triple its acreage, reaching at least 8,000 hectares in farmable land. The company expects that the expansion will cost estimated 10 million euro, as this funding was already partially raised during first round of financing.
Holde’s goal is to become one of the largest Romanian players on the local agricultural market, with at least 20,000 hectares of cultivated land within the next ten years. In order to reach this objective, Holde aims to invest over 50 million euro in developing modern agricultural business where efficiency and operational excellency is the main driver of the results. In order to accomplish this, the company aims to actively use capital markets, appealing to both equity and debt financing mechanisms.
Currently, Holde Agri Invest has a 2,800 hectares farm in the vicinity of Rosiorii de Vede village, in Teleorman country, where it employs mainly organic farming.
($=0.9049 euro)