Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on October 2, 2025
October 2 (Reuters) -Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky, who has bought up businesses across Europe, on Thursday agreed to sell his 20% stake in Thyssenkrupp's steel unit, scrapping plans for a joint venture.
Kretinsky, 50, a former lawyer who built one of Europe's largest energy groups, Energeticky a Prumyslovy Holding (EPH), has acquired stakes in many companies spanning retail, media and postal services, and recently took over Britain's Royal Mail.
His net worth stands at $10.1 billion, according to an estimate by Forbes.
Kretinsky operates through various investment vehicles, including EP Group and VESA Equity Investment. The latter has a portfolio value of more than 3 billion euros ($3.52 billion)according to its website.
Here is a summary of some investments by firms controlled by Kretinsky and his long-term business partner, Patrik Tkac:
EPH
Kretinsky holds slightly more than 50% of EPH through its parent EPCG, which owns scores of energy companies across western and central Europe.
EPH is "part of the process" in the sale of Uniper, a source familiar with the matter said on Jan. 20, declining to be identified because the talks are confidential.
On Dec. 19, EPH signed a deal to acquire Italian group Enel's stake in Slovak electricity producer Slovenske Elektrarne, which the European Commission approved on March 26.
The energy business of EPCG reported a combined core profit (EBITDA) of 7.3 billion euros for 2023.
POSTAL SERVICES
* International Distribution Services
Britain cleared EP Group to buy the Royal Mail parent in a 3.57 billion pound ($4.79 billion) take-private deal in December after securing commitments that the government said would protect one of the world's oldest postal services.
EP Group said on April 3 the takeover had cleared all regulatory conditions, and Kretinsky became chairman of Royal Mail in June.
* PostNL
Kretinsky has a 30.1% stake in the Dutch mail and package delivery group through VESA, according to a December 2024 regulatory filing.
* Quadient
Kretinsky invested 1 billion Czech crowns ($48.35 million) in November 2023 to buy a stake in the French mailroom equipment company and has been building his stake since. VESA owned 25.04% of the voting rights as of September 22, the French markets regulator AMF said.
RETAIL
* Unieuro
French retailer Fnac Darty and Ruby Equity Investment, both linked to Kretinsky via VESA, took the Italian consumer electronics retailer private in early January.
* Casino
Kretinsky's Casino buyout consortium said in February 2024 that the Paris commerce court had approved its plan to bail out the debt-laden French retailer under an accelerated protection procedure.
Following the deal, the consortium owned 53.73% of Casino shares as of May 6, LSEG data showed.
* Fnac Darty
VESA is the largest shareholder of the French electronics and books retailer, with approximately 28% of Fnac Darty's voting rights.
* Foot Locker
VESA had a stake in the U.S. sportswear and footwear retailer which was taken over by Dick's Sporting Goods in September.
* Metro
The German retail group said on February 4 it had signed an agreement with EPGC, its largest shareholder with a 49.99% stake, for it to buy all the remaining shares and take the company private.
* Sainsbury's
VESA has a 10.06% stake in the British supermarket group, LSEG data showed.
MEDIA
* Editis
France's Vivendi agreed in June 2023 to sell its publishing business Editis to International Media Invest, a unit of Kretinsky's Czech Media Invest (CMI). Vivendi said in November 2023 it had received 653 million euros after finalising the sale.
* Elle, Marianne
Kretinsky also owns several French titles via CMI, such as Elle and news magazine Marianne, according to the CMI website.
OTHER
* Thyssenkrupp
Kretinsky sold his 20% stake in Thyssenkrupp's steel unit Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe (TKSE) for around 140 million euros on Thursday, ending talks about a possible joint venture to create a German-Czech steel and energy giant.
* West Ham
Kretinsky's 1890s Holdings group has a 27% stake in the English Premier League soccer club, according to the club's website, in addition to his ownership of the leading Czech team, Sparta Prague.
($1 = 0.8531 euros)
($1 = 0.7447 pounds)
($1 = 20.6840 Czech crowns)
(Compiled by Diana Mandiá, Jan Lopatka, Jason Hovet, Alessandro Parodi, Gianluca Lo Nostro and Jakob Van Calster; Editing by Milla Nissi and Helen Reid)
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