The South East European cable and pay-TV operator United Group may soon find itself under new ownership.
Quoting two sources familiar with the matter, speaking to BIRN, Balkan Insight reports that talks with potential buyers will take place over the next few weeks and an auction held in September.
Interested parties are believed to include the Czech Republic’s PPF Group, which recently completed the acquisition of Telenor’s asssets in CEE and is currently attempting to buy CME’s Nova Group in Bulgaria; and the private equity funds Cinven and BC Partners.
United Group is majority owned by the global investment fund KKR and lists the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) as a minority shareholder.
Its sale could fetch up to €3 billion.
For more background, please see Chris Dziadul Reports: Spotlight on United Group.