FILE - Royal Mail vans line up at London’s largest sorting office, Mount Pleasant, Sept. 12, 2013. The owner of Britain’s Royal Mail said Wednesday May 29, 2024, it has accepted a 3.6 billion pound takeover offer from Czech investor Daniel Kretínsky. LONDON — The owner of Britain’s Royal Mail said Wednesday it has accepted a 3.6 billion pound takeover offer from Czech investor Daniel Křetínský.
Long state-owned, Royal Mail was privatized by the U.K.’s Conservative government in 2013 and has struggled financially. Křetínský, who already holds a 27% stake in the Royal Mail’s parent company, has a vast, Europe-wide portfolio of business interests. In the Czech Republic, he owns book publishing houses, a sport daily and magazines, and he co-owns French newspaper Le Monde. He has stakes in companies including Macy’s, Foot Locker and U.K. supermarket chain Sainsbury’s.