After several months of uncertainty, Landa Digital Printing, founded by visionary entrepreneur Benny Landa, has found a buyer. According to the Israeli newspaper CTech on Saturday evening, Israel's Central District Court approved a restructuring plan involving the acquisition of the nanographic press co-builder by the Israeli investment fund FIMI, for $80 million (68 million euros). This operation enables Landa to avoid liquidation and preserve the majority of jobs.
Crushing debt and a critical context
The situation at Landa Digital Printing had deteriorated dramatically in recent months. In July, the company sought court protection in an attempt to escape its creditors, reporting a cumulative debt of 1.74 billion shekels (around 460 million dollars).
Its financial model relied heavily on the contribution of its own shareholders, who financed 82% of this debt.
In June, a final support package of 11 million euros had been granted, before these investors withdrew for good. At the same time, more than 100 employees were laid off, a sign of the seriousness of the internal crisis .
The company still had a stock of parts valued at 170 million shekels (43 million euros), but no production infrastructure of its own: Landa subcontracted its manufacturing entirely to service providers.
Industrialists interested, but only one offer on the table
In the heart of summer, several printing giants, including HP, had studied the case .
However, none of these avenues has yet come to fruition.
During a crucial ten-hour meeting with its creditors, only one offer was made: that of FIMI, for $80 million (?67 million).
The court, quoted by CTech emphasized that this offer "guarantees the continuation of the company's operations and protects the majority of jobs. Liquidation would have generated only minimal revenues, given the location of customers and the nature of the assets, essentially machinery located in Israel".
According to FIMI partner Gillon Beck, the Israeli newspaper reports that the company was making massive losses of around 500 million shekels a year (125 million euros). In total, these losses amounted to 6 billion shekels (1.65 billion euros).
FIMI plans to implement a three-year turnaround plan to restructure operations, reduce dependence on external suppliers and stabilize the business.
A new era for FIMI
With this acquisition, FIMI now owns 100% of Landa Digital Printing. FIMI, founded by Ishay Davidi in 1996, is Israel's leading private equity company with over $7 billion in assets under management, the largest industrial player in the Israeli economy and one of the country's biggest employers, with over 50,000 employees in 50 plants in Israel and another 100 plants and companies worldwide.
