LIC33 Group Reportedly Takes Control of Bulgaria's Vivacom

The LIC 33 group, comprising investors from the EU, is acquiring control of Bulgarian telecommunication operator Vivacom and other leading companies in the country, dnevnik.bg reported on Wednesday.

LIC 33 will acquire majority stakes in Vivacom and other Bulgarian companies, according to the news daily. The names of the other companies weren't disclosed.

The former owner has sold out the telecom's assets in exchange for the new investor's commitment to refinance all debts owed to banks estimated at about EUR 900 M.

Specialized in operations in emerging markets as well as deals involving distressed companies, the LIC 33 group has already launched efforts to refinance debt alongside Vivacom's restructuring in order to stabilise the company, dnevnik.bg said.

The transaction has to be approved by regulatory authorities to go into force.

According to capital.bg, Bulgarian businessman Tzvetan Vasilev, majority owner of collapsed Corporate Commercial Bank,or KTB, owned a little more than 43% of Vivacom, the brand name of Bulgarian Telecommunication Company (BTC), as of January 2015.

The London-based investment arm of Russia's VTB Bank, VTB Capital, owned a stake of about 33%, while company creditors held the balance.