Axel Springer buys PIN stake for 510 mln eur

Axel Springer AG said it agreed to buy a stake in PIN Group AG from WAZ Media Group, Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group and Rosalia AG for 510 mln eur.

The transaction will raise its holding in the mail service provider to 71.6 pct from 23.5 pct currently.

The deal is pending approval by the German Federal Cartel Office.

The sellers as well as Madsack Publishing Group will remain shareholders and cooperation partners of PIN Group, Axel Springer said.

The company plans to integrate other regional postal service providers into PIN Group until September, which will add more shareholders, thereby reducing Axel Springer’s stake in PIN Group to 63.7 pct.

According to a separate statement by PIN Group, one of the regional firms to be integrated is West Mail Hokding GmbH.

‘In only one and a half years, PIN Group has managed to become the leading service provider in the national letter develivery market after Deutsche Post,’ said PIN Group CEO Guenter Thiel in the statement.

‘After building up the company in Germany, the focus is now on profitable organic growth and further expansion.’

PIN Group was founded in 2005 by Axel Springer, WAZ Media, Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing and Luxembourg-based Rosalia by bundling their respective mail service operations.

The company handles about 2.3 mln mailings a day and expects to more than double its annual sales this year, to 350 mln eur.