Merger madness awaits Baltics

  • 2004-02-05
  • From wire reports
VILNIUS - Vilfima, a subsidiary of Vilniaus Bankas, said last week that it was predicting a wave of company acquisitions this year in Lithuania.

Experts at the firm said that, as the Baltic economy continues to grow and becomes a part of the European Union, local companies would soon begin scouting for businesses they could restructure and then resell to foreign investors.
They explained that Lithuanian companies that have been growing rapidly in recent years have exhausted their growth potential. This will largely leave them with two options: expand abroad, or look for new, albeit familiar businesses on the local market.
Vilfima CEO Zygintas Macenas said Lithuanian companies so far tended to choose the expansion option. "Knowing the local market and peculiarities of the local consumers, it will be possible to restructure newly acquired companies efficiently," he said.