group.one acquires Slovak web hosting company Webglobe from founder Igor Strečko and private equity firm Sandberg Capital

• group.one, Europe’s leading provider of digital services and cloud hosting, signed and agreement to acquire Central European web hosting firm Webglobe. 
• Webglobe is one of the leading web hosting companies in Slovakia and one of the leaders on the Czech and Serbian markets.
• The sellers are Webglobe founder Igor Strečko and investment fund from the portfolio of Sandberg Capital
• The company will continue to be led by current CEO Giacomo Tognoni

Bratislava, May 21, 2024 – Entrepreneur Igor Strečko and the majority owner, private equity firm Sandberg Capital, are selling a 100% stake in Webglobe. The new owner will be group.one, one of the most well-known companies offering cloud and hosting services in Europe. As of 2022, it is backed by multibillion-dollar British private equity fund Cinven and one of the largest pension funds in the world, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan.

Daniel Hagemeier, CEO of group.one, commented: “The CEE region is a vibrant space offering immense potential for providing digital solutions to small businesses. This strategic acquisition aligns perfectly with our growth ambitions. With Webglobe’s strong position in the region and talented team, we are confident in our ability to accelerate growth and innovation in this dynamic region.”

Webglobe was founded in 1999 by Igor Strečko and Juraj Hanták. Since then, it has become a leader on the Central European web hosting market. The company gradually grew thanks to dozens of acquisitions and integration of several Central European web hosting players. Today, it manages almost 300,000 registered domains belonging to almost 100,000 clients and registers approximately 10% of national domains in Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Serbia. 

“group.one will build on the solid foundations established by Igor and the team at Webglobe. We are pleased that our joint efforts have helped us attract a strategic partner like group.one, who has chosen Webglobe as a platform for further expansion in the CEE region,” commented Martin Fedor, Founder and Managing Partner of Sandberg Capital. “Current CEO Giacomo Tognoni joins group.one and will will play a pivotal part in driving growth, innovation, and delivering exceptional value to Webglobe’s customers. This partnership is important not only for the local business ecosystem, but also for the digitization of the Central European region,” added Jakub Krajčovič, investment manager at Sandberg Capital, who managed the investment in Webglobe and led the transaction.  

“Together with private equity firm Sandberg Capital, we have built one of the leading web hosting providers in Central and Eastern Europe since 2019. Our priority was to find a partner under whom Webglobe will continue to grow and 100,000 customers will receive even better services,” said Igor Strečko, who also outlined his future plans in more detail. “My goal is to continue building successful business projects and investing in companies that find raising capital the most challenging.“

Advisors on the transaction on the sellers’ side were investment bank Raymond James, law firms Barger Prekop (Slovakia); Kocián, Šolc, Balaštík (Czechia); and Moravčević, Vojnovič and partners (Serbia) and financial advisor BDO. The completion of the transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.