AS Sanoma Baltics, a subsidiary of Ilta-Sanomat Oy, has increased its share holding in Auto24 from 20% to 85%. Auto24 is the leading market place for used and new cars in Estonia. The seller, 24 Holding OÜ, remains a minority shareholder.
"This acquisition supports our goal to further strengthen our market share in Estonia's growing classified advertising market. Auto24 has some 200,000 unique weekly visitors, which is some 20% of the country's internet users," says Pekka Harju, President of Ilta-Sanomat Oy.
Auto24 has proven the efficiency of its business concept. The service has had an average annual growth of 60–70%.
Kuldne Börs, also part of Sanoma Baltics, is Estonia's leading market place for classified advertising, and it has strengthened its position in the online market in particular.
"We see good growth opportunities in combining the resources and development of Auto24 and Kuldne Börs," says Margus Tomberg, President of AS Kuldne Börs.
Auto24 also publishes Estonia's largest second-hand car magazine, which is freely available throughout the country.
AS Sanoma Baltics is a subsidiary of Ilta-Sanomat Oy. Ilta-Sanomat Oy is part of the Sanoma division of the SanomaWSOY Group.