Germany's ProSiebenSat board chairman Wiele won't seek re-election

BERLIN (Reuters) - ProSiebenSat.1 Supervisory Board Chairman Andreas Wiele will not seek re-election and will leave the company after May 28, the German broadcaster said on Friday.

Its top investor MFE-MediaForEurope, the TV group controlled by Italy's Berlusconi family, is building up a stake in ProSieben as part of plans to create a pan-European broadcaster, but so far has stopped short of launching a bid for the German channel.

"We thank Andreas Wiele for his work as a member and Chairman of the Supervisory Board since 2022 and wish him all the best," a spokesperson for MFE told Reuters.

Wiele consistently spoke against MFE's approach and it was unlikely he would secure re-election without the backing of the top shareholders MFE and Czech investor PPF, which together hold a stake of about 43%, when combined.

"The shareholder structure and the composition of the supervisory board have changed significantly since I took office," Wiele said in a statement, adding that "given these circumstances, I now feel the time has come to hand over my office".

Last month, MFE secured a 3.4 billion euro ($3.57 billion) loan to cover any financing it may need related to the matter, a source told Reuters.

MFE first invested in ProSieben in 2019 and since then built up a nearly 30% stake, just below a legal threshold that would trigger a takeover. The Bavaria-based group has resisted MFE's calls to join the project, striving to remain independent.

The search for a successor starts immediately, the ProSieben statement said.

($1 = 0.9533 euros)

(Reporting by Andrey Sychev and Klaus Lauer; Editing by Franklin Paul and Diane Craft)