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Naspers adds to Polish operations

Nicola Mawson
By Nicola Mawson, Contributing journalist
Johannesburg, 11 Jun 2009

Publishing group Naspers is to spend $19.3 million to expand its operations in Poland through an acquisition.

The company says it aims to buy Warsaw-listed Polish financial portal Bankier.pl, which will be integrated into its e-commerce platform in Poland.

Naspers says the purchase will be done through its Polish subsidiary, Allegro, in which it has a 97% stake. Bankier provides financial news, analysis and comparison-shopping information on consumer financial products, ranging from mutual funds to mortgages.

The Allegro Group operates e-commerce trading platforms; general, automotive and real estate classified sites; a price comparison site; and payment and Web services across Eastern Europe under various brands.

One of Bankier's shareholders has irrevocably committed to tender its 18.4% holding. Assuming total acceptance of the offer, the total investment will be about $19.3 million.

Naspers, which was formed in 1915, has evolved over the past two decades from a traditional print media business in one country, to a broad-based e-media company in multiple markets. Its principal operations are in Internet platforms - focusing on commerce, communities, content, communication and games, pay-television and providing related technologies and print media.

Its most significant operations are located in SA and elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa, China, Russia, Eastern Europe, the Netherlands, India, Brazil and Thailand.

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