Good News for Serbian Agriculture: Cooperation Between MK Group and Victoria Group
MK Group has started the process of taking over the bank loan receivables towards Victoria Group member companies. MK Group signed a contract on taking over the Victoria Group member companies’ debts with the Victoria Group creditors and this process is expected to be completed as soon as possible.
The MK Group director, Dušan Radičević, said that the MK Group’s interest in taking over the receivables from the Victoria Group creditors is a business opportunity for further development of both companies and Serbian agriculture in general, with multiple benefits for all parties involved in this process.
MK Group, which conducts business in as much as 70 municipalities in Serbia, is one of the largest and most successful business systems both in the country and in the region. With 35 years of experience in agriculture, it came to be the largest vertically integrated company in this sector in Serbia, as well as one of the largest in this part of Southeast Europe. The Group manages 30,000ha of land and it is also the largest exporter of grains in Serbia. The income it generates in the agriculture sector amounts to more than EUR 600 million. Since 2015, it has expanded its business to Slovenia, Croatia, and Montenegro. In addition to agriculture, MK Group strives to secure its position as the regional leader in hospitality, tourism, and banking sectors.
Victoria Group is one of the largest agribusiness companies in Serbia, mainly in domestic ownership, whose principal activities involve oilseed processing and trade. It cooperates with over 300 agricultural cooperatives and 40,000 farmers, and has over 1,300 employees in its member companies: Sojaprotein, Victoriaoil, Victoria Logistic, Luka Bačka Palanka, Veterinary Institute Subotica, SP Laboratorija, Victoria Starch and Riboteks. Since its establishment, the company has invested EUR 260 million into the capacities and modernization of its plants, which resulted in its position amongst the largest net exporters in Serbia, exporting its soybean and sunflower products to more than 60 countries around the world. Since 2014, the company has been in the process of financial restructuring and debt repayment reprogramming, along with the implementation of internal business optimization measures.
MK Group decided to take over the banks` receivables of Victoria Group member companies taking into account the MK Group’s strategic commitment to further investments into agriculture on the one side, and the Victoria Group’s potential to achieve great results both on domestic and on foreign markets based on a healthy business model and financial consolidation on the other side. Information about all further steps and details regarding this cooperation will be published in due time.