The sale of Polish mobile operator P4 has been cancelled due to weak bids, newswires reported on October 6.
Private equity funds Novator from Iceland and Tollerton from Greece were understood to be seeking up to €2.8bn for P4. Offers from a number of bidders have been received, including from consortiums featuring Warburg Pincus and Cinven and Blackstone/CVC Capital Partners, Reuters writes, citing unnamed sources. However, it appears the sellers have upped their expectations.
The sale attracted "seven non-binding offers evaluating the company around the area of €3.5bn,” Tollerton said in a statement confirming the sale has been cancelled.
P4 has been growing rapidly in recent years and its owners were reported to be looking to now cash in, with further expansion likely to prove difficult. Novator was said to be especially keen to exit its decade-old investment. The fund did not originally view its involvement in the company as long-term.
P4’s sales in Poland last year rose 22% to PLN5.4bn, while EBITDA expanded 44% to PLN1.54bn. P4 had a market share of close to 25% at the end of last year, similar to the other main players on the Polish market, T-Mobile, Orange, and Plus.
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