Czech Billionaire Submits Initial Offer to Buy Sazka Group
Czech business tycoon Karel Komarek has revived his interest and made an initial public offer to purchase the European gambling powerhouse, Sazka Group. Komarek, for years, has played a big role in the development of several European and Czech casino chains while also being a shareholder in Crown Resorts based in Australia. He’s amassed a wide range of businesses, making him one of the richest entrepreneurs in the world industry of casino and online gambling.
Czech Billionaire Karel Komarek has made a substantial initial offer to buy Sazka Group, a large European gambling outfit as he looks to expand his continental domination by purchasing more assets. ©stevepb/Pixabay
Sazka Group is one of Europe’s largest gambling companies acquired several years ago by Apollo Global Management (AGM), an investment firm with multiple high-stake shares in the continental casino industry. Komarek will aim to purchase Sazka directly from AGM as he looks to expand his empire. While the exact sum offered is unclear, it’s predicted to rise to several hundred million, and it is expected that it could increase if the initial offer is rejected.
Komarek’s primary ownership is KKCG Group, an investment firm founded by Mr Komarek back in 1995. He is working with his top advisers to hatch a working plan, enabling them to control Sazka Group after an offer is accepted. AGM has currently refused to comment on the supposed arrangement leaving analysts and media alike to speculate even further.
The Czech businessman has big plans to open a London based venue for Sazka upon completing the deal, having already staked out potential locations after flying to the UK two weeks ago. The tangible side of the arrangement has been kept extremely private by Komarek and his group of investors in an effort to prevent any fraudulent activity and misinformation.
Sazka Group is based in Prague, the Czech Republic’s capital and has been one of the countries largest gambling companies since their founding in 2012. They run successful lotteries across Europe; apart from the Czech Republic, they also service Austria, Italy, Greece, and Cyprus. Through lottery bets alone, Sazka made over €6.8 billion last year, ending 2020 as one of their most successful periods despite the ongoing global pandemic.
Sazka Look to go Public
After the dip caused by the pandemic, an increase in consumer and investor confidence has led to a plethora of firms going public to capitalize on growing stock market estimates. Initial public offerings have made over €60 billion this year, almost ten times as much as the entire of 2020. Bloomberg’s staggering report showcased the true growth of the industry in 2021, and predictions indicate that the next few years could be the most profitable period of the last few decades. The Netherlands is expected to become one of Europe’s most profitable markets in the next few years.
Several large European companies have gone public this year, and the trend is set to continue deep into 2022. KKCG are still hesitant to make a formal offer as the initial bid is yet to be officially ratified by competition authorities; however, verbal agreements to protect the deal are in place. KCGG representatives have refused to comment on several occasions, leaving an aura of mystery shrouded over the potential business deal between Sazka and Apollo.
Sazka, back in 2017, partnered with banks to fund several projects such as the building of a Vienna-based casino and the refurbishment of their largest Prague-based gambling hall. Since then, they’ve expanded further, becoming one of the dominant forces in what was formerly Yugoslavia, owning significant assets in Austria, Slovakia, and Hungary. In the same year, they bought out one of the most successful Austrian casinos in one of the biggest coups in their history.
The Man Who Bought the World
Originating from humble beginnings, Karel Komarek started his first business immediately after finishing his studies at the age of 18. His original company operated as a family venture working with industrial fittings, eventually expanded into one of the largest in the country. This would prove to be the stepping stone leading him onto bigger and better investments.
Komarek is known to invest significantly in non-profit organizations, such as charities and renewable energy firms. He’s considered one of the greenest entrepreneurs in all of Europe, with almost all of his business receiving impressive CSR scores in the official index. He founded the Karel Komarek Promeny Foundation, which improves public spaces and funds projects for young people in the poorer areas of Prague.
He founded KKCG in 1995, originally focused on lotteries, gambling, and natural resources, including oil. It eventually moved into technology, developing significant machinery that would revolutionize the field of oil refinery. These days his company focus on investments rather than a tangible product/service, but he has left an undeniable legacy on the history of European entrepreneurs. Worth over €3.8 billion, he is the wealthiest citizen of the Czech Republic today.
