Prosus runs out of friends at Russia’s Facebook

VK

08/12/2021 15:15

(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist.  The opinions
expressed are her own.)
    By Dasha Afanasieva
    LONDON, Dec 8 (Reuters Breakingviews) - After a shareholder
shimmy, VK is ending up in the arms of the state gas giant and a
Putin ally. Delisting it to combine the $4 bln group with the
duo’s media empire would unlock savings. It would also be a slap
in the face to minorities like the $180 bln Dutch tech investor.
       
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    CONTEXT NEWS
    - Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov’s holding company USM
said on Dec. 2 that it had sold its stake in Russian internet
group VK to state-run insurer Sogaz. In a statement, USM said it
had sold 57.3% of VK’s voting shares for an undisclosed sum.
Banker Yuri Kovalchuk, whom President Vladimir Putin has
publicly called a personal friend, owns around a third of Sogaz.
Gazprom holds 24% while state lender VTB owns 10%.

 (Editing by Ed Cropley and Oliver Taslic)
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