Private Equity News & Analysis

Mid Europa buys Czech telecom stake from Lehman

The Central and Eastern European-focused private equity firm has increased to 74.6 percent its stake in Falcon Group, a provider of analog and digital television services and telecommunications in the Czech Republic.

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Mid Europa Partners paid an undisclosed amount to purchase Lehman Brothers’ 37.3 percent stake in Falcon Group, a conglomerate that owns companies that provide analogue and digital television services and telecommunications.

London-based Mid Europa and Lehman are members of an investor consortium that bought into Falcon Group two years ago; the purchase of Lehman’s stake gives Mid Europa a 74.6 percent stake in Falcon Group.

Falcon Group owns Ceske Radiokomunikace, which provides the Czech Republic with analog and digital television services, as well as telecommunication services. Falcon Group also owns a 39.2 percent stake in T-Mobile Czech Republic, which provides mobile telecommunication services to about 5.3 million subscribers.

The 9-year-old private equity firm is investing its €1.5 billion ($2.1 billion) third fund, Mid Europa Fund III, which it closed in October in 2007. It recently completed the acquisition of DISA, which moulds metal parts, from Procuritas Capital Investors III in September.