ME Group buys Fujifilm Japan photobooth business for £5.5m

Vending machine company ME Group said it was buying Fujifilm’s automated-photobooth business in Japan for up to £5.5m.

Formerly Photo-Me International, the company on Monday said the deal amount could reduce subject to an adjustment mechanism and expected to fund the transaction via a new local loan facility on “commercially advantageous terms” or existing cash resources if that was not secured.

Chief executive Serge Crasnianski said the purchase would be a “significant” expansion of its current installed estate of approximately 10,500 photobooths in the region.

"Demand for Photo ID in Japan remains robust, driven by the Japanese government's social security and taxation photo ID card scheme,” he added.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com