GED launches 50m-euro fund

Spanish group GED has launched a 50 million euro investment fund, half of which is targeted at Romanian companies. The value of the fund could rise to 100 million euros, according to the Spanish publication Expansion. Besides GED, companies that contributed to the GED Eastern Fund II include other Spanish groups like Caja Madrid, the banks Caja Laboral and Kutxa, the department store owner El Corte Ingles and Austrian financial group Bank Austria. The fund will also target other countries in the region such as Bulgaria, Croatia and Hungary. GED has been in Romania since 1996 through GED Capital Development, the manager of Romanian Post Privatisation Fund. The fund has already invested over 50 million euros in Romanian businesses, including Internet service and communications provider PCNet, drug maker Sicomed and the Continental hotel chain. ZF