Impetum Group, a Romanian group of companies that specializes in private equity and venture capital investments as well as business restructuring services, has become the biggest shareholder of the local IT group Bittnet (BNET).

Following Bittnet’s latest share capital increase, Impetum has reached a stake of almost 30% of the group’s shares, through its divisions Impetum Investments and Agista.

Impetum and Agista plan to turn Bittnet into a regional champion and increase the group’s profitability. Bittnet will continue to finance its development through bond offers and to grow organically and through new acquisitions, and will also list some of its portfolio companies on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

“We will act as a bridge investor between the retail structure with which the company started and the institutional investors we are heading towards, when the company will be large and profitable enough to enter their radars. We bring more than any individual investor to date and probably less than any institutional investor that we are targeting for the next 3-5 years. In other words, we believe that we are exactly what the company needs right now, in this transition, in its way to relevance,” said Andrei Cionca, CEO of Impetum Group.

Bittnet Group's commitment when moving to the main market of BVB was for accelerated revenue growth up to RON 500 million (over EUR 100 mln) by the end of 2024, followed by a shift in focus to profitability. However, profitability becomes a priority for Bittnet Group as of this year, as revealed in the budget submitted to the shareholders' vote on April 27.

“I personally believe not only that the growth target proposed so far will soon be exceeded, but also that Bittnet Group can reach total sales of over RON 1 billion in the next 3 years. Bittnet's growth will be of two types: organic growth, generated by the products of the group companies, and growth resulting from M&A transactions. M&As, followed by the implementation of group synergies have the potential to generate exponential growth. Our role as an anchor investor is to help accelerate the growth rate of the company through access to financial resources and active strategic involvement,” said Nicolae Kovacs, Agista CEO.

After carrying out several private placements of corporate bonds in recent years, Bittnet plans to launch public bond offers this year to draw money from a wider category of investors, according to Cristian Logofatu, one of Bittnet’s cofounders. He and his brother Mihai Logofatu own around 20% of the group’s shares.

The group also plans to list its cybersecurity division Fort on the AeRO market this year. “We announced this project some time ago, and while 2022 was not an ideal year for listings, we believe that we already have enough track record for the listing to be successful in 2023. The field of Cybersecurity is one of great interest both in business and on the capital market, and we come with a solid company, with very good growth, a company that pays dividends and at an advantageous valuation compared to the competitors in Romania,” said Cristian Logofatu.

Bittnet Group was founded in 2007 and listed on the AeRO market in 2015. In 2021, the group transferred its shares on the main market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange. The group posted a consolidated turnover of RON 192.7 mln (EUR 39 mln) in 2022 and an operational profit (EBIT) of RON 8.45 mln. However, its bottom line showed RON 1.8 mln losses due to a negative financial result.

For 2023, the group’s budget includes a turnover of RON 300 mln, 55% higher than in 2022, an EBIT of RON 18 mln and a net profit of RON 15 mln.

editor@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Agista on LinkedIn)