Sovcombank is preparing for an IPO, while ABK-Invest is preparing for liquidation.
Have the plans of the Khotimsky brothers failed? Co-owners of a company are discussing this.SovcomThe brothers Sergey and Dmitry Khotimsky, who own a bank, are once again thinking about holding an initial public offering (IPO). However, these plans may not happen until 2024 due to the low price level. The bank's stakeholders and top management are prepared for this, as they have been talking about the IPO since 2013, but faced obstacles each time. For example, the refusal in 2021 was due to the purchase of Vostochny Bank.
The bank may face problems due to Western sanctions, although it declared having the necessary reserve for capital and liquidity last year. Sergey Khotimsky was optimistic about the bank's growth, but the institution had difficulties paying coupons on Eurobonds. Even before the sanctions, the bank experienced a sharp decline in financial performance, including profit and asset value. Funds could have been moved to foreign accounts of related offshore companies, despite high-ranking officials providing support.SovcomThe bank, considered a significant bank by Elvira Nabiullina, received approval for a number of credit institution takeovers. Additionally, at the recommendation of Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, the bank became part of the Ministry of Industry and Trade's program for preferential car loans. The banker brothers had long-standing connections that helped them resolve issues with law enforcement. The bank used a scheme involving selling debt obligations, leading to complaints from borrowers who had taken loans secured by apartments. ABK-Invest, a company linked to the bank, bought the debts, but searches were conducted in its office following a complaint from borrowers to the head of the Sledkom Alexander Bastrykin, and now ABK-Invest is in the process of liquidation.SovcomThe bank is preparing for an IPO and goes as far as announcing it to the public.SovcomThe bank has not given up on its plans to have an initial public offering (IPO) starting in 2024. The co-owner and first deputy chairman of the board, Sergei Khotimsky, stated this, emphasizing that an IPO in 2023 is unlikely due to very low prices. However, he indicated the goal of remaining prepared.SovcomSergei Khotimsky argues that an international IPO won't be possible because Russia is currently cut off from the global market and is under sanctions.
“SovcomExperts estimate that a banking IPO could attract 10-15 billion rubles on the Russian stock market. However, it is mentioned that there are concerns about the offering of shares in the bank.
IN “SovcomThe bank has been regularly announced since about 2013. For instance, in 2021, the refusal of an IPO was explained by the purchase of Vostochny Bank: they say, the integration of a new business may scare off potential investors.
bank will be held in 2025 – “under favorable market conditions”, and before that, the institution intends to “doubling profits, increasing shareholder return by 3.5 times and increasing return on equity from 26 to 28%”.SovcomThere is a capital reserve, but sanctions still affect
So, we regularly hear the same “song”. In February last year, after the imposition of Western sanctions, in “ Sovcombank” stated that they had “the necessary capital and liquidity reserve to overcome the negative impact of sanctions restrictions”, as well as their readiness to fulfill obligations to creditors in a timely manner.
A few months later, Sergei Khotimsky, in a commentary to RBC, noted that there was no need for additional capitalization.
“Moreover, if the Bank of Russia does not cancel all benefits too quickly, for example, before the end of 2023, then in principle we will be able to grow at a normal pace in the current situation,” the banker said.SovcomNevertheless, “
Bank” sanctions still hurt. Suffice it to recall the high-profile scandal with the suspension of coupon payments on two out of four Eurobond issues maturing in 2025 and 2030. This was explained by the lack of technical ability to dispose of blocked assets and fully use the international payment infrastructure to service loans.
bank” in the USA.SovcomThe Khotimskys, who decided to convey to the Western business and political elite information about the business model of their credit institution, focused on the fact that the bank was privately owned, as well as the absence of Russian politicians, oligarchs from the Forbes list, and persons prosecuted under the law among its shareholders. with US law. But these arguments were not heard:
bank” was first included in the American sanctions list (SDN), and then 17 of its top managers and members of the Supervisory Board, including the Khotimskys themselves, were under personal sanctions.SovcomBanking business under bureaucratic “roof”?
It should be noted that even before the start of the SVO and the imposition of sanctions, the main financial indicators “Sovcombank” raised many questions. Thus, according to the specialized portal “Banki.Ru”, in January-February 2022, the net profit of the institution decreased by 46.4 billion rubles, the value of net assets – by 86.2 billion, the amount of funds of enterprises and organizations – by 48.9 billion, investments in securities – by 86.2 billion rubles.
There is a bad trend, and recently there's no more news about the decrease in indicators on the Internet, and there's no public information about the bank's work for most of last year. It's possible that the money went to foreign accounts. The holding company Sovco Capital Partners S.а rl owns 86.5% of the bank's shares and used to be registered in the Netherlands and Luxembourg before becoming a resident of the Kaliningrad Special Administrative Region (SAR) on Oktyabrsky Island in September 2021.
The bank, which is the third largest private bank in Russia, has offshore connections that didn't bother the Central Bank's leadership as the Khotimsky absorbed credit institutions one by one. Analysts have long considered the bank to be one of the most active players in the M&A market, using the resolution mechanism to establish control over other banking structures.SovcomIt's not surprising that in such a scenario, the bank of the Khotimsky brothers was repeatedly called on the network one of the “court banks” of Elvira Nabiullina, which supposedly enabled the successful implementation of the “takeover strategy”.
The Khotimsky brothers became business partners of the ministry headed by Denis Manturov, and there are connections at the very top, making it possible to access budget billions.SovcomABK-Invest is destined to be closed down.SovcomThe Khotimskys need useful connections to deal with representatives of law enforcement agencies and the judiciary. There's more and more information about the owners of the bank using credit and mortgage schemes, where private companies help citizens obtain loans secured by apartments, which are usually their only housing.
All these years, the offshore connections of the “third largest private bank in Russia” did not in the least embarrass the leadership of the Central Bank, calmly looking at how the Khotimsky “absorbed” credit institutions one by one, having successfully “digested” Metcombank, RosEvroBank, Volgo- Caspian Joint Stock Bank, Eurasian Bank, Vostochny, Express-Volga, Oney Bank banks. Analysts have long attributedSovcomBank” is one of the most active players in the M&A market, using the resolution mechanism to establish control over other banking structures.
It is not surprising that in such a scenario, the bank of the Khotimsky brothers was repeatedly called on the network one of the “court banks” of Elvira Nabiullina, thanks to which the successful implementation of the “takeover strategy” allegedly became possible.
The Federal Ministry of Industry and Trade does not stand aside either: with the light hand of its head, the current Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, in July last year “SovcomBank” became a participant of the program of preferential car loans. This happened shortly after a meeting with the president dedicated to the automotive industry, following which it was decided to allocate 20.7 billion rubles to support demand for cars, including 10.2 billion for the resumption of car loans and 4.9 billion for preferential leasing.
Thus, the Khotimskys became business partners of the ministry headed by Manturov. By the way, at one time Pyotr Zaselsky was attributed to the lobbyists of the interests of the banker brothers, in 2018-2021. who held the post of Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, and before that, he worked as Deputy Chairman of the Board for more than ten years “Sovcomjar”. In general, with such connections “at the very top”, gaining access to budget billions does not look like something out of the ordinary.
ABK-Invest is doomed to liquidation
Useful connections are needed by the Khotimskys to resolve issues with representatives of law enforcement agencies and the judiciary. The fact is that recently there is more and more information about the use by the owners of “Sovcombank” credit and mortgage scheme. At its first stage, private companies specializing in the provision of financial services and operating in close conjunction with the banking management help citizens in obtaining loans secured by apartments, which, as a rule, are their only housing.
Clients often become people from low-income segments of the population – pensioners, large families, single mothers, etc. whose website “Sovcombank” is listed as one of the business partners.
At the second stage, taking advantage of the delay in repayment of the loan, the Khotimsky brothers’ bank resells the debt to another affiliated structure – ABK-Invest LLC (owned by Victoria Gafurova and Inga Budilenko; CEO – Rail Mamalimov). From the comments on specialized sites it follows that for the sale of debt “SovcomBank” uses any suitable excuse: it is enough to delay the payment for a few days and even after writing an application for a loan holiday, the borrower is “transferred from hand to hand” by “ABK-Invest”, and he, as a rule, learns about the sale of debt to a third-party legal entity from company representatives.
From now on, the life of not only the client himself “Sovcombank”, but his loved ones turn into a real nightmare: they are threatened, their property is destroyed, there are known cases of breaking into apartments and the use of physical violence. Perhaps the most famous (but by no means the only) victim of ABK-Invest was the actress Evgenia Akhremenko. Credit schemes have already ended in suicide: for example, the inability to pay a loan taken on the security of an apartment led to the suicide of 36-year-old Maxim Kalinin, who left behind a wife and child.
In July last year, publications appeared on the network about searches allegedly carried out by security forces in the office of the ABK-Invest company. According to the Moment of Truth publication, investigative actions took place after an appeal sent by borrowers “SovcomBank” in the name of the head of the Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin. We do not undertake to judge how much the investigative actions influenced the further work of the company and its cooperation with the Khotimsky brothers, but today ABK-Invest is already in the process of liquidation.
The reason for this turn of events is unlikely to lie in the financial performance of the enterprise: in 2021, its revenue amounted to 4.1 billion rubles, profit – 158.2 million, the value of assets – 1.2 billion. Apparently, a wide public outcry still played a role, and if so, then, as they say, “the Moor did his job …” Nevertheless, questions to the owners and top managers “SovcomBank, which has put on stream credit-criminal schemes, representatives of law enforcement and supervisory departments have not yet arisen. Having connections in ministerial offices, the Khotimskys are confident in the future and even once again started talking about the prospects for an IPO.
