{{Short description|Portuguese Firm}} {{Infobox company | name = Alpac Capital | logo = Alpac Capital Logo.svg | logo_caption = | logo_alt = | type = [[Private company]] | industry = [[Financial services]] | founded = {{Start date and age|2013}} | hq_location_city = [[Lisbon]] | hq_location_country = [[Portugal]] | key_people = Pedro Vargas David, Luis Santos | products = [[Investment fund]]s | num_employees = | num_employees_year = <!-- Year of num_employees data (if known) --> | website = {{URL|https://alpaccapital.com/}} }} '''Alpac Capital''' is a [[Portugal|Portuguese]] investment group, founded in 2013, which manages three [[investment fund]]s: a technology fund, a telecom fund and a media fund. It is headquartered in [[Lisbon]].
== History == Alpac Capital was founded in 2013. Besides its global headquarters in Lisbon, the firm also has regional offices in [[Budapest]] and [[Dubai]].
Alpac Capital's CEO [[Pedro Vargas David]], is well established in the government of [[Hungary|Hungarian]] PM [[Viktor Orbán]] and is the son of [[Mario David (politician)|Mario David]], one of Orbán's advisers.<ref name="RFE">{{cite web |title=New Euronews Owner, Alpac Capital, Linked To Hungarian PM's Adviser |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/hungary-euronews-orban-david/31619957.html |website=[[Radio Free Europe]] |access-date=23 January 2025}}</ref> Due to Orbán's repeated media violations, where he influences media regulators to punish any and all journalists who negatively report on his or his government's actions, Alpac Capital's purchase of [[Euronews]] from [[Naguib Sawiris]] was put under increased scrutiny as an attempt by Orbán to influence wider European politics.<ref name="RFE"/>
On April 18, 2024, the [[International Federation of Journalists]] called for a European parliamentary inquiry into the Hungarian government's influence over Euronews via Alpac Capital due to Euronews attempting to influence the [[2024 European Parliament election]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Journalists’ union calls for the opening of a parliamentary inquiry into Euronews takeover |url=https://www.ifj.org/media-centre/news/detail/article/france-journalists-union-calls-for-the-opening-of-a-parliamentary-inquiry-into-euronews-takeover |website=[[International Federation of Journalists]] |access-date=23 January 2025}}</ref>
On May 31, 2024, Alpac Capital was fined €100,000 by the [[Portuguese Securities Market Commission]] for failing to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing. The specific charges were failures to comply with the obligation to obtain customer identification data, to obtain counterparty identification data in various respects, to assess the quality of beneficiaries, to adopt additional due diligence procedures, to take enhanced measures about the customer and the counterparty, and to notify the termination of the duties of the person responsible for compliance and to replace that person.<ref name="Euractiv">{{cite web |last1=Noronha |first1=Alexandra |title=Portuguese regulator fines Euronews owner for failing to prevent money laundering |url=https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/news/portuguese-regulator-fines-euronews-owner-for-failing-to-prevent-money-laundering/ |website=[[Euractiv]] |access-date=23 January 2025}}</ref>
== Funds == Alpacs main funds are:
* A Tech Fund – East West EuVECA Fund with 6 invested companies (Dreamshaper,<ref name="Dreamshaper">{{cite news |last1=Forbes |first1=Forbes |title=Dreamshaper capta maior ronda de investimento recebida por uma edtech portuguesa |url=https://www.forbespt.com/dreamshaper-capta-maior-ronda-de-investimento-recebida-por-uma-edtech-portuguesa/}}</ref> Codevision,<ref name="Codevision">{{cite news |last1=Ntech News |first1=Ntech News |title=Codevision garante investimento de 18 milhões de euros da Alpac Capital |url=https://www.ntech.news/codevision-garante-investimento-de-18-milhoes-de-euros-da-alpac-capital/}}</ref> Biometrid,<ref name="Biometrid">{{cite web |last1=Blog Cledara |title=Hottest Startups in Portugal |url=https://www.cledara.com/blog/hottest-startups-in-portugal}}</ref> Login, TC2<ref name="TC2">{{cite web |publisher=TC2 |title=Finantail Investor at TC2 |date=28 July 2022 |url=https://tc2.hu/en/financial-investor-at-tc2/}}</ref>) and one divested company (Petapilot<ref name="Petapilot">{{cite news |last1=Eco Sapo |title=Americana Sovos compra Saphety e Petapilot para entrar em Portugal |url=https://eco.sapo.pt/2021/07/18/americana-sovos-compra-saphety-e-petapilot-para-entrar-em-portugal/}}</ref>).
* A Telecom Fund – Luso Pannon EuVECA Fund,<ref name="Luso Pannon EuVECA Fund">{{cite news |work=Budapest Business Journal |title=4ig capital increases wind up with bartolomeu subscription |url=https://bbj.hu/business/tech/telco/4ig-capital-increases-wind-up-with-bartolomeu-subscription}}</ref> with a qualified minority stake in the telecom conglomerate [[4iG]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-04-25 |title=4iG capital increases wind up with Bartolomeu subscription - Budapest Business Journal |url=https://bbj.hu/business/tech/telco/4ig-capital-increases-wind-up-with-bartolomeu-subscription/ |access-date=2025-10-14 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Melinda |first=Kiss |date=2021-07-01 |title=Új tulajdonos jelent meg a 4iG-ben |url=https://index.hu/gazdasag/2021/07/01/4ig-bartolomeu-investments/ |access-date=2025-10-14 |website=index.hu |language=hu}}</ref>
* A Media Fund – Future Media EuVECA Fund which controls 98% of [[Euronews]].<ref name="Euronews">{{cite news |last1=Euronews |title=Alpac Capital completes Euronews acquisition |url=https://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2022/07/05/alpac-capital-completes-euronews-acquisition/}}</ref> In December 2021, Alpac Capital signed an agreement to buy the controlling stake in [[Lyon]]-based broadcaster [[Euronews]] from [[Egypt]]ian telecoms magnate [[Naguib Sawiris]].
Besides the above-mentioned Funds, the Managing Partners of Alpac Capital also own interests in Renewable Solar Energy<ref name="Expresso">{{cite news |last1=Solar |first1=Energy |title=Megaprojeto Solar leva 1000 milhões ao Alto Alentejo |url=https://expresso.pt/economia/2019-03-23-Megaprojeto-solar-leva-1000-milhoes-ao-Alto-Alentejo}}</ref><ref name="Eco - Energia">{{cite news |last1=Solar |first1=Energy |title=Galp compra a Alpac metade de um projeto solar de 450 Mw em Ourique |url=https://eco.sapo.pt/2020/07/11/galp-compra-a-alpac-metade-de-um-projeto-solar-de-450-mw-em-ourique/}}</ref> (Luz.ON) and Media<ref name="Media">{{cite news |last1=Meios e Publicidade |title=Alpac controla 91% do capital da Newsplex |url=https://www.meiosepublicidade.pt/2022/12/alpac-controla-91-do-capital-da-newsplex/}}</ref> (Newsplex.SA).
==Key people== Alpac Capital has two Founding and Managing Partners: Pedro Vargas David and Luis Santos.
Pedro Vargas David, CEO, was also Former Head of Strategy of Jerónimo Martins and holds an MBA from Insead and Executive education from Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Business School. Luis Santos, who worked at Mckinsey for 9 years, in Europe, South America and Asia, holds an MBA from Columbia University and a PhD on Political Science and International Relations from Universidade Católica Portuguesa. {{Citation needed|date=April 2026}} Pedro is son of former Secretary of State of Portugal and former MEP in the European Union, Mário David.<ref name="Parlamento">{{cite web |last1=David |first1=Mário |title=Parlamento |url=https://www.parlamento.pt/DeputadoGP/Paginas/Biografia.aspx?BID=1742}}</ref>
Luis Santos is the son of Portuguese football coach [[Fernando Santos (footballer, born 1954)|Fernando Santos]], who won the [[UEFA Euro 2016|2016 UEFA European Championship]] and the [[2018–19 UEFA Nations League|2019 UEFA Nations League]].<ref name="Relações">{{cite news |last1=Santos |first1=Luís |title=Luís Santos, o filho milionário do selecionador nacional |url=https://magg.sapo.pt/celebridades/artigos/luis-santos-o-filho-milionario-do-selecionador-nacional}}</ref> His girlfriend, Isabel Figueira, is a well-known Portuguese actress and TV presenter.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Isabel Figueira revela finalmente como conheceu o "filho milionário" do ex-selecionador Fernando Santos |url=https://www.flash.pt/celebridades/nacional/detalhe/isabel-figueira-revela-finalmente-como-conheceu-o-filho-milionario-do-ex-selecionador-fernando-santos |access-date=2024-04-12 |website=www.flash.pt |language=pt-pt}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *{{official|https://alpaccapital.com/ }}
[[Category:2013 establishments in Portugal]] [[Category:Holding companies of Portugal]] [[Category:Investment management companies]] [[Category:Investment companies]] [[Category:Private equity firms]] [[Category:Venture capital firms]] [[Category:Financial services companies established in 2013]] [[Category:Holding companies established in 2013]]