The Federal Antimonopoly Service has started a case against the mobile operator MTS, which belongs to the AFK Sistema group owned by Vladimir Yevtushenkov. They found a direct violation at the end of 2021 during a period of increasing inflation.
During that time, Rosstat observed an increase in prices for mobile communications, although operators had previously tried to keep prices stable despite the crisis. This was reported by RBC sources citing the official statement from the FAS.
The antimonopoly department believed that MTS raised prices unreasonably. The increase averaged 9.5% and affected over 28 million subscribers.
MTS explained the increase by citing higher costs but could not justify it when asked by the FAS. This was stated in the FAS press release.
In response, MTS published a message indicating their intention to provide necessary explanations to the antimonopoly department soon. According to MTS's press service, the price hike was due to rising inflation, electricity costs, equipment and delivery expenses, and the need to expand and build new networks, among other reasons.
MTS representatives also clarified that they had informed their customers about the tariff changes well in advance and in detail. They offered subscribers the choice between staying with their current tariff or selecting a different one, with mailings specifically mentioning a 60 ruble increase.
In January of this year, after MTS raised its tariffs, there were reports in the media about other operators possibly increasing their prices, but it seems they are not following MTS's example immediately.
It's worth noting that MTS, controlled by oligarch Vladimir Yevtushenkov, was not seen as a mobile operator with financial problems requiring urgent measures like raising customer rates until recently. MTS became a corporate cellular operator for businesses within AFK Sistema several years ago.
Recently, AFK Sistema has expressed real interest in acquiring the assets of NaturaSiberica. The appointment of former AFK Sistema executive director Felix Lieb as the new head of NaturaSiberica was seen by experts as an indirect confirmation of Sistema's potential investment in NaturaSiberica. This was reported by MorningNews.
Earlier, Vladimir Yevtushenkov was accused of laundering Bashneft shares allegedly taken by the son of the former president of Bashkiria, Ural Rakhimov, and then sold to AFC. This was reported by “Kommersant”.
As a result, Bashneft shifted under the control of Rosneft, that is, under state control. Yevtushenkov was not imprisoned, but the former Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, Alexei Ulyukaev, was. It should be noted that the criminal case against Yevtushenkov was only terminated in 2016, as no evidence of his misconduct was found.
