VILNIUS - Hermis Capital, one of Lithuania's largest investment companies, has gone on an acquisition campaign signing an agreement to buy a stake in Orion, a Norwegian investment company, as well as a real estate investor in Latvia.
As part of the deal with Orion, Orion Securities, a brokerage subsidiary, will be merged with the financial brokerage company Baltijos Vertybiniai Popieriai (Baltic Securities), which is currently 100 percent owned by Hermis Capital.
"The merger between the two brokerage firms operating in emerging markets will create a larger company and open up more opportunities to undertake a wider variety of projects," said Hermis Capital director Darius Janulevicius.
The transaction will be finalized once approval is obtained from the Lithuanian Securities Commission, Hermis Capital said in a statement.
Hermis Capital has applied for regulatory approval to buy a 50 percent stake in Latvia's Investiciju Uznemums and manage the company jointly with Ranga Group, another Lithuanian firm.
Hermis Capital spokeswoman Kristina Ziaunyte said that Investiciju Uznemums specialized in developing real estate projects.
The Lithuanian Competition Council's spokeswoman Palmira Kvietkauskiene confirmed that the regulatory authority received the request on June 30.
Last year Hermis Capital invested a total of 30 million litas (8.7 million euros) in Lithuania and another 124.7 million litas abroad. Total revenues of the firm reached 1.1 billion litas. Hermis Capital has holdings in the refrigerator producer Snaige, the dairy company Kelmes Pienine, the Lithuanian Film Studios and Baltijos Vertybiniai Popieriai (Baltic Securities). It also owns a stake in Norway's Kitron and a convertible loan note equivalent to a 3.22 percent equity stake in Timan Oil &Gas, a UK-registered oil exploration and production company.
Hermis Capital is controlled by five entities. Sanitex, Lithuania's largest wholesale trade and logistics group, holds a 25 percent stake.
Orion Securities provides a complete range of investment banking services and is known as a leading advisor on investment in small and medium sized companies, with a focus on companies listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange. It has been active on the Norwegian market since 1999, and in Sweden since 2003. It employs around 70 financial brokers and analysts, of which 15 work in its Lithuanian office.
BVP director Alius Jakubelis said that the merger between the Lithuanian and Norwegian brokerage firms was one of the first steps by Orion to becoming a major market participant in the Nordic and Baltic region.
Established in 1993, BVP has placed itself among the top five financial brokerage companies in Lithuania in recent years. Currently, it employs 10 professionals.
