The Iki retail chain announced plans to open 10 new Iki supermarkets, as well as several Cento discount stores, in Latvia. Spokeswoman Dagnija Dizbite said that on June 12 a supermarket opened in Sigulda and another would open its doors in Balozi later this month. Iki currently operates 35 stores in Latvia 's 24 Cento and 10 Iki supermarkets. The chain's turnover in Lithuania and Latvia last year reached 641 million euros, up 32.2 percent year-on-year. Last November the European independent retailers' association Coopernic signed an agreement to purchase an 80 percent share in Palink, which owns Iki.
Estonia's Merko, one of the largest construction companies in the Baltics, may close or sell a subsidiary due to a lack of capital. According to a report in Eesti Ekspress, Merko Group CEO Toomas Annus has admitted that E.L.L. Kinnisvara, a real estate subsidiary, was in dire financial straits and could become insolvent. He reportedly said that the firm's economic situation was such that it couldn't start new development projects and those in progress needed 560 million kroons (35.9 million euros) this year to stay afloat. In order to borrow funds the company has to sell property, which in the current market is a dead-end policy. Recently E.L.L. Kinnisvara made several unsuccessful real estate transactions, according to the paper.
Polish media reported that AS Forticom, an Estonian firm, bought 70 percent of Nasza Klasa, the leading Polish social internet network, for nearly 60 million euros, Eesti Paevaleht reported. The transaction took place half a year ago. Nasza-klasa.pl is one of the most popular Polish Web sites, boasting a constant 7.5 million users. In all some 14 million people are registered users of the portal. Although Forticom is registered in Tallinn, it is not controlled by Estonians. The circle of owners includes firms registered in London and Luxembourg and Forticom CEO Vitalijs Rubinsteins, who lives in Latvia. In Russia Forticom has a holding in the social network Odnoklassniki.ru comprising 18 million users.
