Vertu found a new owner for only 50 million British pounds

British manufacturer of luxury mobile phones Vertu changed hands again. This is the third time the company changes hands from the moment Nokia decided to sell this unit in 2012. According to the newspaper The Telegraph, the company is only 50 million British pounds (about 61 million dollars) has acquired the investment firm, which is engaged in the Turkish businessman Hakan Uzan.

According to sources, he is the heir of one of the once dominant Turkish Uzan family. In his best years it was owned by a huge conglomerate Uzan Group, which owned many banks, power stations, several television stations and mobile operator Telsim. The latter was founded in 1994 on the money I borrowed from Nokia and Motorola. After Telsim has been faced with several financial problems because of the resulting , by 2001, the company's debt on loans amounted to $ 2.7 billion. Their problems with the Uzan family, the company has suffered as a result, billions in losses, were decided in court.

Vertu is not known for its technological refinements, but rather for its chic and additional services, including the services of providing mobile Concierge is available 24 hours a day

But this was only the beginning of the fall of the Uzan family. In 2004, the Turkish government nationalized more than 200 companies owned by the Uzan Group. This was done in favor of the redemption of the company's debt of almost $ 5.7 billion to the Turkish Bank Imar Bank. Several high-ranking members of the Uzan family, including its leader Kemal usana, went on the run, commenting on his action, their prosecution by the state for political reasons. According to The Telegraph, the Uzan family "was granted political asylum in France, but its exact location remains unknown."

The Purchase of a family Vertu will hardly solve all the financial difficulties. Manufacturer of luxury phones has long been known for sales of outdated Android devices with mediocre technical characteristics, but in the luxury version. Models often appear in materials such as leather, titanium, gold and platinum. In one of his latest financial statements (for 2014) the company reported a loss of 53 million British pounds in actual sales is 110 million pounds. By 2015, it was reported 450.000 units sold Vertu around the world, with an average price around $ 6000. Main production facility of the company is still located in the UK and around the world, there are several points of sale.

In 2012 Vertu was sold to the Finnish company Nokia, the Swedish private equity firm EQT VI in approximately 175 million British pounds. In 2015, EQT sold the company to the Hong Kong firm Godin Holdings (the transaction price was not reported). In a statement published by the newspaper the Telegraph, the new owner Hakan Uzan through his representative, said the following:

"Vertu is a very powerful brand with well-established market niche. Looking forward to start working with the team and going to invest the funds necessary for the full potential of the company."