United Group is set to acquire 100% of the share capital of the Bulgarian operators Net1 and ComNet Sofia.
The deal will be conducted through United Group’s local unit Vivacom, with TeleGeography reporting that it is expected to close in Q2 2021. The amount paid for the acquisition was not revealed.
Both Bulgarian units operate primarily in the Sofia region, with Net1 one of the major players in this area, providing residential internet and pay-TV services as well as enterprise telecoms such as IT support, telephony and video surveillance. ComNet Sofia provides internet and TV services via its fibre-to-the-building (FTTB) network.
United Group, which is based in the Netherlands and owned by London-based BC Partners, agreed to acquire Bulgaria’s Vivacom in November 2019, with the deal approved in April the following year by the European Commission.
The EC agreed to the purchase after being satisfied that it would not stifle competition in the market due to “the presence of several other players in the market of retail supply of pay-TV services” and the “very limited increase in the merged entity’s market position.” The acquisition closed in August 2020.