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March 2019 www.intellinews.com I Page 10
Russia’s MTS to sell its stake in online retailer Ozon to Sistema
Russia’s leading mobile phone company Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) says it will sell its 18.7% stake in Russian online retailer Ozon Holdings to AFK Sistema for RUB7.9bn ($120mn).
MTS paid a total of RUB5.9bn for the stake: RUB2.7bn in 2014 and RUB3.2bn in 2018.
As a result of the deal, MTS will have no owner- ship in Ozon, while Sistema will control 35.6%, of which 16.3% will be through Sistema VC, in which Sistema has an 80% stake.
The deal is targeted to close in early March. The payment will be made in 3 installments, with the third paid in July 2021 (a market interest rate will apply).
Yandex to IPO Yandex.Taxi in the next two years
Russia’s internet giant Yandex says it will IPO
its Yandex.Taxi service sometime in the next two years, the operating and financial director of Yan- dex Greg Abovsky told RIA Novosti on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on January 25.
“We have said in the past that Yandex.Taxi may and will soon become a public company. I do not know whether this will happen in 2019 or 2020, but it will happen,” said Abovskiy.
Previously plans to hold IPO following the merger with Uber in the region were announced for the first half of 2019. The listing will be held, most
The sale will be at the minimum Ozon valuation, with a delayed payment scheme (plus interest) – suggests c30% premium to MTS investments, reports BCS.
“The deal suggests a Rb42bn valuation for 100% Ozon. The price is at the lower end of valuations for the recent deals, in which Sistema and Baring Vostok increased their stakes in Ozon – Kommersant. The price suggests a c30% premi- um to MTS investments, and a c10% annualized return. Strategy-wise, we were not big believers in the synergies between the carrier and e-tailer,” Maria Sukhanova of BCS Global Markets said in a note.
Yandex to IPO Yandex.Taxi in the next two years
likely in the US, Abovskii told Bloomberg.
“There are no specific plans for IPOs of other companies besides Yandex. Taxi,” the Yandex di- rector added in an interview with RIA Novosti.
Yandex.Taxi and Uber have combined the busi- nesses in Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Azerbai- jan, Armenia and Georgia, investing in the capital of the new company $225mn and $100mn re- spectively. The deal was closed in February last year and 59.3% of the joint venture belongs to Yandex, 36.9% belong to Uber, and another 3.8% belong to employees.