All news

Lvov court arrests real estate, assets of Berezovsky’s companies in Ukraine

Detectives found that all foresaid assets were purchased on the stolen funds
Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS
Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS

LVOV, November 8 (Itar-Tass) — The Sikhivsky District Court of Lvov satisfied a request for arrest of real estate and assets of several companies, which business tycoon Boris Berezovsky owns in Ukraine.

The court ruling contains a long list of Berezovsky’s enterprises in the Lvov and Poltava Regions, including the property of a mineral water plant, land plots and buildings. Berezovsky’s assets of more than ten companies, joint stock societies in Kiev, Lvov and other Ukrainian cities were arrested. The alienation of this property is banned and it is also stated that the court verdict “is final and cannot be appealed.”

Last October, under a criminal case against Berezovsky and Badri Patarkatsishvili’s inheritors the Basmanny District Court of Moscow satisfied a request for arrest of the Balkan assets, which these oligarchs and the company Salford Capital Partners own. These assets include the plants and the popular Balkan trademarks Knyaz Milos and Bambi. As a prohibitive injunction Russian and Ukrainian assets of the company Salford Capital Partners were arrested in the same criminal case.

Meanwhile, according to some media reports, major Western investors are interested in the purchase of Salford Capital Partners. The international funds TPG and CVCI are among potential purchasers of the company. Both funds operate in Russia. TPG has bought the Russian retailer Lenta and is negotiating a stake in VTB.

The experts noted that the purchase of the assets of the oligarchs is fraught with financial and legal risks, because there are real chances that all deals, in which Berezovsky and the inheritors of Patarkatsishvili’s family are involved, can be contested. The detectives found that all foresaid assets were purchased on the stolen funds.