Sanctioned Russian metallurgical billionaire Vladimir Potanin has acquired 9.95% of the shares of the Russian search engine Yandex through companies he owns. This is reported by Reuters with reference to the statements of the companies participating in the agreement, reports UNN.
Details
A consortium of Russian investors bought out Yandex's Russian business from its Dutch parent company in July 2024 for nearly $5.4 billion in cash and shares, ending foreign ownership of the Internet company.
Yandex said after the deal that consortium investors can now own shares in the company directly, but no shareholder will receive a controlling stake.
Catalytic People, a joint venture between Potanin's holding company Interros and T-Technologies, owner of online lender T-Bank, acquired Meridian-Servis, an investment company that held a stake in the Yandex consortium, on May 26, according to the Russian corporate register.
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Sources told Reuters in May 2023 that Potanin, one of Russia's richest people, was among the initial bidders hunting for a stake in Yandex.
In order for the deal to be approved by regulators, both in Russia and in the United States, where parent company Yandex NV was listed on the Nasdaq, it was necessary to avoid sanctioned buyers. And Yandex emphasized that compliance with this condition is a key factor.
This effectively excluded Potanin, who has been under sanctions since 2022, from the list of candidates to buy securities in Yandex.
Previously, Meridian-Servis was owned by Alexander Ryazanov, former head of Russian energy giant Gazprom, who was not under sanctions.
Former Deputy Chairman of the Bank of Russia and critic of the war in Ukraine Sergei Aleksashenko, recognized by the Russian Ministry of Justice as a foreign agent, said on Tuesday that this deal is an example of how sanctions can be circumvented through business deals.
Interros is the largest shareholder of T-Technologies with a 41% stake. Both companies said that Catalytic People, which also owns 64% of Tochka Bank, will be used for investments in innovative and high-tech projects.
Potanin is the CEO of Russian mining company Nornickel and its largest shareholder, but also has other investments through Interros.
T-Technologies President Stanislav Bliznyuk said the deal opened up opportunities for T-Technologies and Yandex to work together on educational and technology projects.
Yandex dominates the Russian online search market and plays a leading role in the taxi, cloud technology and food delivery sectors.
The deal to split these assets with other international business units was one of the largest and most significant corporate deals since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Recall
The European Union a year ago, in March 2024, removed from the sanctions list Yandex founder Arkady Volozh, one of the representatives of the company that owns MTS, Sergei Mndoyants, and the head of the European branch of the pro-Putin biker club Josef Hambalek.