Private equity firm Enterprise Investors (EI), one of the largest in the CSEE region, is actively pursuing investment opportunities on the local market, which has attractive growth prospects, the firm’s representatives have said.
The firm is eyeing investment opportunities in businesses offering platforms for expansion within the region and beyond, in consumption-driven and export-driven companies, across a range of industries including retail, financial services, healthcare, IT or BPO.
This applies to Romania as well, where IT, financial services – particularly niches that allow the development of needed solutions, and healthcare remain attractive sectors.
“The Romanian economy is very attractive for investors, with very high growth in the last years and still a lot of growth to deliver,” Bartosz Kwiatkowski, EI Partner responsible for investments in Romania, explained.
The fund is investing between EUR 20 million and EUR 75 million in established companies, in stakes that range from large minority positions to full ownership, with involvement typically lasting between five and eight years.
EI, which is investing from the fund it launched in July last year, has completed in 2023 three new portfolio company acquisitions, namely in Renters, the second largest short-term rental manager in Poland; in specialty logistics services provider Goodspeed, Poland’s largest provider of highly specialized temperature-controlled logistics services for ready-to-eat meal producers, where it acquired a 49.8% stake; and in Advanced Protection Systems (APS), the largest Polish independent manufacturer of radars and comprehensive anti-drone systems – a significant minority share.
The fund doesn’t currently have direct investments on the local market but it is present through two portfolio companies that have expanded into Romania, namely software house Software Mind and 8a, an e-store offering outdoor gear and apparel.
In Romania, EI has invested over EUR 200 million in several companies including Profi, toy and children’s products retailer Noriel and construction materials manufacturer Macon, which it has exited. EI exited food retailer Profi in 2016, when it signed an agreement to sell 100% of shares to Mid Europa Partners. The latter sold the retailer to Ahold Delhaize in 2023 for an enterprise value of approximately EUR1.3 billion pre-IFRS16 (EUR1.8 billion post-IFRS 16).
Active since 1990, EI has raised ten funds that have invested and committed a total of EUR 2.3 billion in 155 companies and exited 139 of those investments. This includes 35 IPOs of portfolio companies completed on the stock exchanges in Warsaw (WSE), Prague (PSE), Vilnius (Nasdaq) and New York (NYSE).
(Photo: Enterprise Investors)
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