Vekselberg returned $1 billion in loans

Billionaire Viktor Vekselberg and his Renova group, who were hit by US sanctions, returned more than 1 billion Swiss francs ($1 billion) in loans to banks including JPMorgan, Credit Suisse and UBS. A well-informed source and a spokesman for Renova told Reuters on Saturday. Vekselberg's Swiss industrial assets were pledged under these loans.

A source familiar with the company's talks with creditors told The Bell that Vekselberg also repaid the loan, which was pledged with shares in UC Rusal. In total, since falling under the sanctions, the Renova structures have repaid about $ 2 billion, he claims.

Details

• “The problem with bank loans has been finally resolved,” a source from the agency said. “The banks got the money.” According to him, the parties continue to discuss only some details.
• The money was secured by large stakes in the Swiss industrial groups Schmolz+Bickenbach, OC Oerlikon and Sulzer. If the loans had not been repaid by June 5 (U.S. sanctions require banks to cut ties with Vekselberg and his companies by then), this could have led to a sell-off of shares.
• The loan under which UC Rusal shares were pledged has also been repaid, a source familiar with the company's negotiations with creditors told The Bell. Earlier sources of The Bell said that its size is $800 million - $1 billion.
• In December 2017, the Swiss investment company Liwet Holding (a Renova structure, owns shares in Swiss companies) received a syndicated loan of 720 million Swiss francs from Natixis, Credit Suisse, ING, Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan and UBS.
• The same banks, with the exception of UBS, in July 2016 issued a loan of 350 million francs to Tiwel Holding, another Swiss structure of Renova. Reuters sources say that the size of the repaid loan is 310 million francs.
• Although such transactions are usually confidential, the Swiss takeover committee has published details of the agreements between banks and Renova structures, and also released creditors from certain obligations to the Russian billionaire's companies. From the published documents, it follows that 25.51% of the votes in Schmolz + Bickenbach and 41.35% of the votes in OC Oerlikon served as collateral for a loan of 750 million francs. A 21.29% stake in Sulzer was pledged under a loan of 350 million francs, and a 42.14% stake, which was collateral for a Sberbank loan.

Where does the money come from?

• In early May, Renova received a credit line from the Russian Promsvyazbank. As stated in the message of the Ministry of Finance, the money was allocated to support the company's business after it was subjected to US sanctions.
• Swiss newspaper Schweiz am Wochenende reported earlier on Saturday that Russian banks had agreed to buy back Liwet's 720 million francs in loans.
• A Renova spokesman said the group repaid the loans from its "own funds."

Context

• On Friday, it became known that Vekselberg's company reduced its stake in Liwet Holding below its control. The businessman agreed to an offer to exchange its shares for the assets of his partners Yevgeny Olkhovik and Vladimir Kremer, the holding said in a statement . As a result, the effective share of Kremer and Olkhovik in Liwet increased to 38.9%. In addition, Renova created a separate legal structure for the incentive program for its managers, to which it transferred 16.63% of Liwet. As a result of these two transactions, Renova's share in this Swiss company decreased to 44.46%.
• In both Oerlikon and specialty steel manufacturer Schmolz + Bickenbach, Renova's share was initially below the control. Immediately after the announcement of sanctions in early April, Renova decided to sell a 14.59% stake in Sulzer to the company itself for 546 million Swiss francs ($561.7 million), reducing its stake from 63.42 to 48.83%.
• at Renova At the end of April, it was reported that assets worth $1.5-2 billion were frozen , in particular, all dollar accounts.
• In April, during a meeting with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, Vekselberg told him about the consequences of US sanctions for his business. One of Renova's problems is margin calls that worked on loans ranging from $800 million to $1 billion, told The Bell. three sources close to the meeting participants

Vladimir Motorin