Jaromír Soukup: He sold half of the Médea agency

2023-11-16 09:40:00

Investor Jan Čermák, who already owns 50 percent of Soukup’s company Empresa Media, bought a half share in the media agency Médea from Jaromír Soukup. This follows from the notarial records of the transaction. Neither party disclosed the price. Médea, with a registered capital of CZK 636 million, operates primarily as a media agency and at the same time fully controls other companies such as Médea Promotion, Médea Interactive or Médea Public Relations. According to the analytical company COMvergence, Médea was the third largest media agency in the Czech Republic last year.

Since October, Čermák has owned half of Soukup’s company Empresa Media, which operates TV Barrandov. Similar to Empresa and Médee, according to the commercial register, Čermák joined Soukup as the second member of the statutory body, while all major steps require the consent of both members of the board of directors.

“Médea faced considerable pressure from creditors this year. That is why we will deal with them as a priority and look for a solution,” said Cermak. “Everything is done in accordance with previous agreements,” added Soukup. According to information from ČTK, Čermák is also negotiating to enter Soukup’s next company, IMP.

The largest creditors of companies from Jaromír Soukup’s empire are the IFIS fund (with loans originally provided by CREDITAS and ČSOB banks) and Gomanold (with a loan bought from Unicredit). These loans are secured by real estate and land. Another creditor is Čermák’s company Enreda, which bought receivables from Czech Radiocommunications. Other creditors are, for example, Czech Television or the Knowlimits agency.

Čermák and his company Servis-24 specialize in helping companies burdened with debt. Last year, he acquired a 49 percent stake in the Vítkov couple’s NWT company from Zlín, which was sent into insolvency by unmanaged energy deals. In NWT, creditors authorized a reorganization path in February 2023, the plan of which was approved by a large majority at the September 2023 creditors’ meeting. He also helped with the sale of the Grandhotel Nabokov in Mariánské Lázně for half a billion.