Eurowag to expand CEE network with Inelo buyout

Czech-founded WAG Payment Solutions PLC announced on Tuesday that it has agreed to fully acquire Grupa Inelo SA, a leading fleet and work time manager in Poland and Slovenia, for up to EUR 306mn.

FTSE 250 company WAG, also known as Eurowag, runs a digital platform that processes fuel and toll payments for hauliers Europe-wide. It is present in 18 countries, including Czechia, Poland, Hungary and Romania in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE).

Eurowag CEO Martin Vohanka, who founded the company in 1995, said “this strategically important transaction not only brings additional scale to Eurowag, it also takes us significantly closer to achieving our ambition of delivering a fully integrated, digital end-to-end platform for customers in the commercial road transportation sector.”

Inelo currently has multiple owners including European Telematics Holding. Eurowag is majority owned by Vohanka, as well as US private equity form TA Associates.

The deal, according to Vohanka, will solidify Eurowag’s position “as a leading provider of solutions to the CRT (Commercial Road Transportation) industry in the CEE region.”

Vohanca added that the acquisition “also adds exciting new products to our platform in working time management solutions, which provide mission critical services to customers and drive excellent customer retention”.

Inelo’s CEO and CFO will join Eurowag on completion of the acquisition. The company will add around 87,000 lorries to the W.A.G. fleet management network. Eurowag announced separately that its current CFO Magdalena Bartos is set to step down after three years.

Inelo CEO Magdalena Magnuszewska said “We are benefitting from the digitalisation wave across the CRT industry, and this potential has been recognized by the Eurowag Group.

“I am glad that, thanks to our partnership with Eurowag, we will be able to continue the development of the ‘one stop shop for commercial road transport’ offer throughout Europe, and by joining forces with a pan-European leader we will accelerate our growth,” she added.

The final price is dependent on Inelo’s Ebitda for the whole of 2022, capped at EUR 12.5mn, which would be payable next year.

The news came as Eurowag reported net revenue of EUR 135.6mn in the first nine months of the year, up 23% from 2021. This included EUR 38.7mn net revenues from mobility solutions, up 32% from 2021, and EUR 96.9mn net revenues from payment solutions, up 20% year-on-year.