Thomas Crosbie Holdings, owner of the Irish Examiner, has bought Provincial Publishers Ltd, owner of the Nationalist and Leinster Times, Carlow.

The provincial newspaper group publishes the Kildare Nationalist and the Laois Nationalist as well as the Carlow edition of the newspaper. It also operates an office retail business, Arda Office Supplies.

Mr Anthony Dinan, managing director of Thomas Crosbie Holdings, said it was looking to buy more titles. "We believe there is a great future there for regional newspapers. There is a great market for them." He would not disclose the price paid for the Nationalist group.

The Nationalist was founded in 1883. It was owned by descendants of its founders up to 1994, when it was the subject of a management buy-out. The shareholders are: chairman Mr Desmond Fisher; managing director Mr Tom Geoghegan; general manager Mr Willie Cremen; and financial controller Mr Adrian Dunlevy.

All four will remain on the board. Mr Geoghegan is to remain as managing director. The three Nationalist titles have a combined circulation of 17,000 and a readership of more than 70,000.

On Monday, it was announced that a consortium of which Thomas Crosbie Holdings forms a part, Red Hot FM, had won the second Cork radio licence. It has a 20 per cent share of the station, as well as 15 per cent of Mid-West Radio and 8.5 per cent of North-West Radio.

As well as the Irish Examiner, Thomas Crosbie Holdings owns the Evening Echo and six other regional titles.