Daniel Křetínský is the character behind the purchase of one of Britain’s premier national brands: The Royal Mail. The purchase is a long way from complete with foreign ownership and royal warrants standing in the way, but it is worth looking at who he actually is.
We’d be surprised if Ian Fleming could have dreamt this!
Daniel Křetínský, the would-be owner of the Royal Mail, has all the trappings of the modern day billionaire.
The 48-year old Czech businessman and lawyer is worth a cool £6bn, according to the Sunday Times Rich List.
He owns fancy houses in upmarket areas.
These include Heath Hall on London’s Bishop Avenue – aka billionaire’s row – which he bought for £65m and once rented to popstar Justin Bieber for a reputed £25,000 a week.
He also spent €21.5m (£18.3m) buying a Parisian townhouse down the road from the Elysee Palace from Russian oligarch and fertilizer magnate Dmitry Rybolovlev and his ex-wife.
Mr Křetínský also owns a share of the Velaa private island resort in the Maldives.
And, like others in his wealth bracket, he has a football club or two. These include AC Sparta Prague, as well as Britain’s own West Ham in which he holds a 27% stake.
Apparently known as the “quiet sphinx” for his inscrutable style, what is known about Mr Křetínský is that he made his money in Central and Eastern European energy via a labyrinthine structure of companies.
This includes Eustream which transports Russian gas via pipelines that run through Ukraine, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
In the UK, Mr Křetínský has built up quite a portfolio in well-known brands through Vesa Equity Investment, a private firm which is registered in Luxembourg.
These include sizeable stakes in supermarket group Sainsbury’s and the sportswear retailer Footlocker – as well as International Distribution Services, the parent company of Royal Mail.
A Bond Villian In Waiting.
