Jubilant to get a slice of Domino’s Eurasia from Turkish PE Fund

By Narinder Kapur

  • 22 Feb 2021
Credit: Pixabay

Jubilant Foodworks Ltd, which runs the Indian unit of Domino’s Pizza, will acquire a company that owns a significant stake in the entity that operates the pizza chain in several Eurasian countries.

The Noida-based firm, through Jubilant Foodworks Netherlands BV, will buy Fides Food Systems Coöperatief UA from Turkish Private Equity Fund II LP.

Fides, in turn, holds a 32.81% stake in DP Eurasia NV, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange and acts as the exclusive master franchisee of the Domino’s Pizza brand in Turkey, Russia, Georgia and Azerbaijan.

The Fides acquisition will take place for a consideration of £24.8 million (about $34.7 million or Rs 251 crore), Jubilant said in a filing with stock exchanges.

Jubilant says it expects the acquisition to be completed within 20 business days. In a statement, it said the move will help it to indirectly hold the minority stake in DP Eurasia.

“We have been partners with Domino’s in India for more than 25 years. With that experience, we hope to add value to DP Eurasia’s business and create value for our shareholders,” Jubilant co-chairmen Shyam S. Bhartia and Hari S. Bhartia said.

Shares of DP Eurasia closed trading on Friday on the London Stock Exchange up 11.11% at £70 (about Rs 7,103) apiece.

At the end of 2020, the company operated 771 dine-in and takeaway outlets across the four countries in which it has a presence.

Jubilant Foodworks, meanwhile, was trading 4.08% up at Rs 3,071.45 (about $42.38) during Monday mid-morning. It reported consolidated net sales of Rs 3,927.27 crore (about $541 million) for FY20, with post-tax profit of Rs 278.79 crore (about $38 million) for the same period.

In India, the company’s Domino’s Pizza franchise operates at least 1,314 restaurants in 285 cities. It also maintains the rights to develop and operate the chain in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal.

Last December, VCCircle reported that Jubilant had invested Rs 92 crore (about $12.7 million) in Bengaluru-based Barbeque Nation. The company had invested in the casual-dining chain along with a homegrown private equity firm.