Translated material
Abramovich sold all shares of Channel One. He bought them from Berezovsky 18 years ago
VTB Capital has bought all of Roman Abramovich's remaining 20% of Channel One shares from ORT-KB, the VTB Group reported . The billionaire bought his stake from Boris Berezovsky in the early 2000s and has since sold part of it to the National Media Group (NMG).
More details. VTB claims that this is a direct investment based on investment returns, and does not disclose details of the deal. The owners of the package are structures of VTB Capital, but which legal entity exactly is still unclear, Vedomosti clarifies .
“The digital transformation of the media that has taken place opens up new opportunities for the TV channel, and we believe in the success of the management’s efforts in further digitalization of the channel and development of digital content,” the statement quotes VTB First Deputy Chairman Yuri Solovyov as saying.
“The deal was closed yesterday,” VTB President Andrey Kostin told Interfax.
Details: Abramovich bought 49% of the shares of Channel One from Berezovsky for $150 million, when it was still called Public Russian Television – ORT.
In 2010, Abramovich sold part of his NMG shares for $145 million, reducing his stake to 24%. NMG's co-owners are structures of Yuri Kovalchuk's Rossiya Bank and partners, and structures of Alexey Mordashov.
He had to part with another 4% last year due to a 20% limit on the ownership of Russian media assets by foreigners and persons with dual citizenship. By that time, the businessman already had Israeli citizenship . The shares were bought by the same NMG, bringing the share in Channel One to 29%.
Context: The purchase of ORT figured in the Berezovsky v. Abramovich case in the London High Court in 2011–2012.
Berezovsky claimed that he was forced to sell ORT at a price well below the market price under pressure and threats from Abramovich. Berezovsky's side claimed that the businessman paid $10 million for the asset, not $150 million. Abramovich insisted that he paid $150 million, but most of the amount was not specified in the agreement at the request of Berezovsky's partner Badri Patarkatsishvili.
Former head of the presidential administration Alexander Voloshin testified in court. He said that President Putin met with Berezovsky in 2000, but that there was no ultimatum to hand over ORT shares to the state or accept Vladimir Gusinsky's fate . Berezovsky lost the trial.
At the end of last year, VTB structures, together with NMG, bought the media holding STS Media from Alisher Usmanov’s former partner Ivan Tavrin.
Channel One, along with Russia 1 (VGTRK) and NTV (Gazprom-Media), is the country's top three TV channels. Its place in this top three is unknown, because the channel has not published its financial statements since 2016.
The controlling stake in Channel One remains with the state (38.9% with the Federal Property Management Agency, 9.1% with the Federal State Unitary Enterprise ITAR-TASS, 3% with the Federal State Unitary Enterprise Ostankino Television Technical Center).
Sergey Smirnov