Swedish private equity fund EQT, founded by the Wallenberg family, one of the richest families in Sweden, has confirmed its interest in the Romanian market for the first time, after it announced substantial investments in Eastern Europe.
"The Romanian market is interesting for us, moreover we see Central and Eastern Europe as the new main investment market for EQT. It is hard to say how much EQT will invest in Romania and in the region, each investment opportunity is looked at in detail, regardless of the investments made in the past. However, we estimate substantial investment volumes in the entire region over the coming years," Johan Hahnel, representative of EQT Partners' communication department told ZIARUL FINANCIAR. Focusing mainly on northern Europe, where deals amount to up to one billion euros, EQT recently entered Central and Eastern Europe and opened an office in Warsaw, Poland. The presence of the Swedes in Poland is the result of newly identified investment opportunities, and is also important in terms of the companies held in the portfolio that may expand or make acquisitions in the region. EQT Partners manages 11 investment funds under the EQT umbrella, whose assets stand at 11 billion euros, and which have invested 7 billion euros in more than 70 companies thus far.
"The expansion of EQT in Eastern Europe had been planned for a long time and was not influenced by the financial crisis," Hahnel went on.
EQT's targets are medium-sized companies, which are leaders on their respective markets, generate cash flows, and prove they have a valuable management team. The sectors of interest include infrastructure, telecommunications, construction supplies, pharmaceuticals and the food industry.
"We are interested in investment opportunities in non-cyclical sectors, family businesses that are looking for a partner for international
