Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky has acquired a 4.63 % stake in French retailer Casino, along with his Slovak partner Patrik Tkac. The move comes soon after a failed attempt to get a majority share in the German Metro group.
Tons of debt
Kretinsky calls Casino “the best positioned retail group on the French market” and a “European leader best placed to respond to the profound sector transformations” in a press release. The Czech investor already has a major stake in the Metro group as well as in the German Mall group, an e-commerce company that is active in Central and Eastern Europe. However, his recent attempt to buy the remaining Metro group shares failed.
Casino is suffering from huge debts: the company has announced a two billion euro divestment plan on top of all the activities the group has already sold recently.
“Mr. Kretinsky has extensive experience as an industrial investor, including in the retail sector; his new stake in Casino is further proof of confidence in our ability to innovate and execute”, CEO Jean-Charles Naouri welcomes the new investor. Kretinsky’s company, Vesa Equity Investment, will most likely also get a representative in the French retailer’s board of directors.
