Bonnier News becomes majority owner of Finnish daily Hufvudstadsbladet

Bonnier News, through Dagens Nyheter, and the Finnish association Konstsamfundet have entered into a strategic agreement for long-term cooperation concerning the three newspapers Hufvudstadsbladet, Västra Nyland, and Östnyland. Through a new share issue, the ownership base in the holding company KSF Media is expanded so that Bonnier News owns 51 percent of the company, while Konstsamfundet owns 49 percent.

“Hufvudstadsbladet is the most important voice in Swedish in Finland. We believe that our experiences in digitizing news media can contribute to giving HBL the necessary strength going forward,” says Peter Wolodarski, Editor-in-Chief and Business Area Manager of Dagens Nyheter.

“The cooperation ensures a strong, modern, and influential Swedish-speaking media voice in Finland in the future as well. This way, we can provide Hufvudstadsbladet, Västra Nyland, and Östnyland with even better opportunities to invest in editorial content and its development,” says Gunvor Kronman, Chairman of the Board of Konstsamfundet.

Peter Wolodarski will become Chairman of the Board in the joint company, which will be part of the Dagens Nyheter business area. He notes that Dagens Nyheter and Bonnier News can contribute resources in journalism, technology, product, and business development.

“Dagens Nyheter’s success in the Swedish market has been based on putting journalism at the center. Hufvudstadsbladet is already on a similar journey, and as owners, we will be able to provide resources and experiences that will hopefully make the newspaper even stronger. This feels particularly important at a time when Finland and Sweden are getting closer,” says Peter Wolodarski.

The three newspapers – Hufvudstadsbladet, Västra Nyland, and Östnyland – will remain journalistically independent with their own responsible publisher, and the editorial leadership will also continue to be based in Finland.

For Bonnier News, the cooperation agreement also has a clear cultural dimension.

“Bonnier News is a long-term owner with a firm belief in the value of free speech and independent journalism. We see that promoting Finnish-Swedish culture and the Swedish language in Finland is essential. We have a strong belief that through co-ownership with the Konstsamfundet Association, we can contribute to ensuring the long-term publishing of Hufvudstadsbladet, Västra Nyland and Östnyland and create value for both parties. If we succeed, it will have a decisive impact on the Swedish voice in Finland,” says Anders Eriksson, CEO of Bonnier News.

The Konstsamfundet Association has owned the three newspapers for many years and has contributed between 2.5 and 3.5 million euros annually to KSF Media. The support from Konstsamfundet will continue at a similar level even after the cooperation with Dagens Nyheter is established.

“With this cooperation, Konstsamfundet directs the support we provide to HBL Media towards journalism and content production, rather than increasingly investing in technology and digitization,” says Stefan Björkman, CEO of Konstsamfundet.

The agreement and the intended cooperation require approval from the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority to take effect.