Axel Springer still in a buying mood

 Europe's largest publishing house is investing in the profitable postal services market by acquiring a majority stake in the Luxembourg Pin Group. Instead of the previous 25.5 percent, Axel Springer will in future hold 71 percent of Deutsche Post's strongest competitor in the German mail business. According to SDA, corresponding agreements have been concluded with the co-owners, the WAZ media group, the Georg von Hiltzbrinck publishing group and Roaslia. Springer is investing a total of 510 million euros in the acquisition. The cartel office still has to give the transaction the green light. No objections are expected, especially as Springer's stake will be reduced to 63.7 percent by September through the transfer of shares to regional publishers.
 
Springer recently announced the acquisition of Aufeminin as part of its digitization strategy (see
). The media company is now strengthening its position on the postal market. The Pin Group, in which the participating publishing houses bundle their postal activities, is arguably a worthwhile investment: even before the abolition of the German letter monopoly, the company recorded rapid growth and is now the second-largest provider on the German letter market with more than 60 regional subsidiaries. The Group covers 96 percent of Germany and employs over 7,000 people.