Premier Capital plc, the McDonald’s operator in Malta and the Baltic states, has been appointed developmental licencee for the brand in the Greek market, McDonald’s Europe announced yesterday.

Premier Capital, a wholly-owned Maltese company, plans to take over 19 restaurants mainly in and around Athens and become key in the future development of the McDonald’s business and brand in Greece from June 1.

For Premier Capital the acquisition is viewed as a major step forward in achieving further expansion in Europe. Premier Capital currently owns eight McDonald’s restaurants in Malta along with another 10 in Estonia, nine in Lithuania and eight in Latvia. This new acquisition brings the total number of McDonald’s restaurants owned and operated by Premier Capital to 54 across five territories.

“We are very happy to have concluded the negotiation successfully and are now looking forward to this new challenge,” Premier Capital chairman Marin Hili said. “We are confident the Greek market is full of potential and see many opportunities to improve and grow the McDonald’s business in Greece.”

In a statement, Steve Easterbrook, president of McDonald’s Europe, said: “We are confident that the agreement with Premier Capital will help enhance the McDonald’s brand in Greece, build the business over the long term, and further strengthen the relationship with our customers.”

Owned by Marin, Beppe and Melo Hili, Premier Capital acquired the McDonald’s Malta operation in 2005. Three years later, the company expanded into the Baltics where it runs all of the McDonald’s restaurants in the three Baltic countries.

The company currently generates annual revenues up to €50 million and provides jobs for over 2,000 people. Its current 35 restaurants serve more than 24 million customers every year.