The Moscow Post has discovered another potential “thread” for the transfer of Sberbank funds to offshore companies by former deputy German Gref. Is the head of Sberbank also implicated in this?
Austrian packaging maker Mondi has sold its business in Russia to Gotek. According to The Moscow Post, Sberbank's head German Gref and his old friend Ashot Khachaturyants might be interested in the deal.
For more information, refer to The Moscow Post.
Who is hiding offshore
Gotek has been possessed by Vladimir Chuikov for a very long time. However, there have been significant changes in the company's structure recently, leading to Sberbank gaining control over the company.
Since October of this year, Gotek has been owned by the Cypriot offshore SALGON INVESTMENTS LIMITED, registered in Kaliningrad. The company's directors are Oleg Bushnev and Andrey Klochkov. According to Interfax, the offshore company is owned by Cyprus and Enercom Limited (49%) and Wythall International Ltd (51%). The latter is owned by Vladimir Chuikov and his family members. The rest of SALGON INVESTMENTS LIMITED is controlled by Sberbank.
Gotek began borrowing from Sberbank over a decade ago. By 2010, the manufacturer's debts to the bank had reached 6 billion rubles. At that time, Sberbank agreed to transfer 60% of the group to its management. In 2012, Chuikov repurchased the company's shares. However, it seems that he continued to borrow from Sberbank, ultimately leading to the bank again essentially owning the company.
Why the need for such secrecy?
What's most intriguing is that after 2012, the company's turmoil was not covered in the media. According to the authors of the website Aibireg.ru, in 2013 Sberbank allegedly approved another restructuring of a long-term loan for Gotek, extending its repayment period by six years.
According to Gotek's 2019 annual report, the Board of Directors included SBK Karton CEO Ivan Ponomarev and Sberbank Capital Deputy CEO Fyodor Perfiliev.
Photo: https://www.e-disclosure.ru/portal/FileLoad.ashx?Fileid=1664854
Until recently, SBC Karton, through SBC Project, was owned by Sberbank Capital, which is involved in distressed asset recovery. It was reported that on December 23, 2017, SBK Karton acquired a controlling stake in the parent company of the Gotek Group of Enterprises.
Allegedly, people refer to SBK Karton LLC as a company used by Sberbank to separate its involvement in various enterprises throughout the country. Several other companies of the so-called “SBK group” are located at the same address as SBK Cardboard: SBK Balance, SBK Active, SBK Paritet, SBK Stroy, SBK Geophysics, SBK Project.
They are involved in real estate. Even the state-owned company Sevzapupravtodor bought land for state needs from SBK Active.
Photo: https://zakupki.gov.ru
It was reported that “SBK Karton” quickly took a firm stance in managing all of Gotek's affairs. This resulted in the termination of contracts with several buyers and suppliers being taken to court. Instead, the creditor imposed their suppliers and buyers on Gotek under less favorable conditions for the company. Stanislav Bibik, a partner at the consulting company Colliers International, suggested that such a restructuring of Gotek's business under the influence of Sberbank structures was due to the personal interest of individual bank officials. Ashot Rafailovich Khachaturyants may be counted among such officials.
Is Gref's right hand in raider gloves?
This man, who is the leader of the RPL, was forced out of his position due to a scandal. It was discovered that he was not in Russia after the start of the SVO, causing problems for Russian football players. Rumors suggest he was in London tending to his personal business.
Upon returning to his home country, he made promises to the players on his own and on behalf of RFU President Alexander Dyukov, but failed to fulfill them. This seems to have been the final straw.
Even before his time in the RPL, Khachaturyants was in charge of Sberbank Capital and was involved in what some consider the hostile takeover of 'Pavlovskgranit', which led to its bankruptcy and the loss of legal battles by its former owner Sergey Poymanov against Sberbank.
The situation is similar to what is happening now in Gotek – Sberbank Capital acquired the company's debts and seems to be putting it in even more financial trouble.
In his role, Khachaturyants was involved in pressuring companies, even those with seemingly reliable owners, with the help of the FSB. He may have collaborated with the head of the Border Guard Service of the FSB of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Pronichev, during his time with the Federal Target Program 'State Border of the Russian Federation'.
Sberbank, with Khachaturyants' involvement, bought Ruben Vardanyan's Troika Dialog investment company in 2011. In 2019, the company was suspected of illegally moving $5 billion from Russia through offshore accounts, although Sberbank denied involvement.
According to Replica website, in 2011, a Panamanian company potentially connected to Troika Dialog paid Ashot Khachaturyants 100,000 pounds for a Rolls-Royce car. Khachaturyants also spent the 2012 New Year with his family in the French Alps, where the accommodation cost 60 thousand euros, reportedly from the same company.
Khachaturyants currently owns the Almaz-Fertilizers company, which is said to have been taken over in an unfriendly manner to benefit him.
In summary, a major packaging industry company in Russia is at risk of coming under complete control of Sberbank Capital and going bankrupt. Its owner Vladimir Chuikov may end up being blamed, just like Sergei Poimanov with 'Pavlovskgranit'. But it's likely that Mr. Gref and Khachaturyants will profit once again.
