Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on June 27, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleCzech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky is now Royal Mail's chairman following EP Group's acquisition, ensuring the company's UK operations continue.
(Reuters) -Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky will become the chairman of British parcel and postal firm Royal Mail, his investment firm EP Group said on Friday.
Kretinsky's EP Group closed its 3.57 billion pounds ($4.90 billion) acquisition of Royal Mail's parent company International Distribution Services (IDS) earlier this month.
The new owner of one of the world's oldest postal companies also said on Friday that it had allotted and issued a "golden share" of 1 pound to the British government, which was part of the deal.
The "golden share" ensures Royal Mail retains its headquarters in Britain and would continue to pay UK taxes.
Royal Mail was privatised in 2013 in a massive state selloff at an initial public offering price of 330 pence a share.
Kretinsky was already the biggest shareholder in IDS, the owner of both Royal Mail and international parcels network GLS.
The deal was cleared in December after Britain secured commitments from Kretinsky to protect the more than 500-year-old company and the future of thousands of workers and customers.
($1 = 0.7288 pounds)
(Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky has been appointed as the chairman of Royal Mail.
Kretinsky's EP Group closed its acquisition of Royal Mail's parent company for 3.57 billion pounds ($4.90 billion).
The 'golden share' ensures that Royal Mail retains its headquarters in Britain and continues to pay UK taxes.
Royal Mail was privatized in 2013 during a massive state selloff at an initial public offering price of 330 pence a share.
Kretinsky secured commitments to protect the more than 500-year-old company and the future of thousands of workers and customers.
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