Germany investigates £1bn Tui share transfer by sanctioned Russian oligarch

theguardian.com:

Germany is investigating deals under which most of the stake in Tui held by sanctioned Russian oligarch Alexei Mordashov was transferred to an entity controlled by his wife, Marina Mordashova, the world’s biggest holiday company said on Friday.

The investigation comes after Tui was informed this week that Mordashova controls Ondero Ltd, which bought stakes in Mordashov’s Unifirm Ltd, Tui’s top shareholder, from two of his subsidiaries on 28 February.

Mordashov was among Russian businessmen sanctioned by the EU that day. He has also been sanctioned by the UK.

Mordashova has been named in media reports as Mordashov’s wife.

According to Refinitiv data, the 34% stake in Tui owned by the Mordashov family is worth about €1.5bn (£1.3bn).

Germany’s economy ministry has “initiated an investigation procedure under the foreign trade and payments act against Ondero Ltd regarding the effectiveness of the notified transaction”, Tui said on Friday. The ministry confirmed the investigation was under way, but declined further comment.

A spokesperson for Russian steelmaker Severstal, in which Mordashov is the controlling shareholder, declined to comment on the matter.

Tui also said it had been informed that until the conclusion of the investigation, the transaction was “pendingly invalid” and Unifirm Ltd’s voting rights could not be exercised.

The travel company said earlier this month that Mordashov had informed it about changes in the ownership structure of Unifirm Ltd, under which it transferred 4.1% of its 34% Tui stake to Russia’s Severgroup, also controlled by Mordashov.

At the time it was also disclosed that Mordashov’s subsidiaries KN-Holding LLC and Rayglow Ltd sold their shares held in Unifirm Ltd to Ondero Ltd on 28 February, giving