MOSCOW, June 17. /TASS/. The London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) recognized the right of Finvision Holdings to continue the proceedings in the Arbitration Court of the Amur Region, representative of Finvision Holdings told TASS.
"The LCIA Tribunal confirmed the validity of the requirement of Finvision Holdings to execute the option agreement, recognized the right of Finvision to litigation in Russia," the company explained.
The holding’s representative also noted that the Court confirmed the right of Finvision Holdings to demand execution of the agreement on the repurchase of 10% in Vostochny Bank. In addition, LCIA recognized withdrawal of Baring Vostok from the option agreement and the extension of the arbitration clause as illegal.
It was reported earlier that the Arbitration Court of the Amur Region refused at a meeting on Monday satisfy the Vostochny Bank’s motion to cancel interim measures - a ban on the bank’s additional issue of shares worth 5 bln rubles ($77.76 mln). "The court refused the request of Vostochny Bank, it left the measures in force," a representative of Evison Holdings told TASS after closed meeting, adding that the ruling would be appealed.
On June 5, the Arbitration Court of the Amur Region, at the claim of Finvision Holdings imposed a ban on an additional issue of Vostochny Bank shares for 5 bln rubles ($77.76 mln).
The Court attracted Evison Holdings (owned by Baring Vostok fund, owns 52% in Vostochny Bank) as a third party in the case of lifting the ban on an additional issue of Vostochny Bank for 5 bln rubles ($77.76 mln). Earlier, Evison Holdings representatives filed a relevant petition with the court.
The founder of the Baring Vostok fund, which owns Evison Holdings, is Michael Calvey, the main defendant in the case of theft of 2.5 bln rubles ($38.88 mln) from Vostochny. Russia’s Investigative Committee launched a criminal case into the embezzlement of 2.5 bln rubles ($38.88 mln) from Vostochny Bank on February 13. Calvey was later put under house arrest.
Baring Vostok is one of the largest private equity firms focusing on Russia and the CIS with $3.7 bln in capital. Since 1994, the fund has poured more than $2.4 bln of investments into 70 projects in the areas of financial services, oil and gas, telecommunications and media, and into the consumer sector. Baring Vostok’s projects include CTC Media, Yandex, Avito, Ozon, ER-Telecom, 1C, and Novomet.