BELGRADE (Serbia), March 22 (SeeNews) – Serbian biscuit producer Jaffa has acquired insolvent confectionery maker Banini for 15 million euro ($16.2 million), regional public broadcaster Radio Televizija Vojvodine (RTV) reported.
Jaffa was the only company to pay a 6 million euro deposit and has agreed the purchase of Banini for the starting price in the tender, RTV which operates in Serbia's autonomous province of Vojvodina, reported on Tuesday.
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"Banini is insolvent and has been facing very serious problems. It owes 40 million euro to banks and 10 million euro to suppliers," the broadcaster quoted the managing director of Jaffa, Bojan Knezevic, as saying.
Jaffa decided to buy Banini, as it believes in the potential of its factory in Kikinda, in northern Serbia, Knezevic added.
In February, the Zrenjanin Commercial Court said it ordered the sale of the factory of Banini to repay debt to creditors.
Banini's financial woes began in 2010 when it launched the construction of the factory through a bank loan. Three years later, the company's creditors offered a debt restructuring plan.
On April 26, 2016, the Zrenjanin Commercial Court declared Banini bankrupt acting on a request by French lender Societe Generale, to which the confectionery group owes 15 million euro.
($ = 0.926913 euro)