Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky has been named the new chairman of Royal Mail, according to an announcement from his investment firm, EP Group, on Friday.
Earlier this month, EP Group completed its £3.57 billion ($4.90 billion) acquisition of International Distribution Services (IDS), the parent company of Royal Mail.
As part of the takeover agreement, the EP Group has issued a symbolic £1 "golden share" to the British government. This special share is designed to safeguard key commitments—ensuring Royal Mail maintains its headquarters in the UK and continues to pay UK taxes.
Royal Mail, one of the world’s oldest postal services, was privatised in 2013 with an initial public offering priced at 330 pence per share. Kretinsky was already IDS's largest shareholder prior to the full acquisition.
The UK government approved the deal in December after securing assurances from Kretinsky to preserve the historic company's operations and protect thousands of jobs and customer services. Photo by SunDawn, Wikimedia commons.