The Qiwi plc group of companies will sell its Russian assets, Vedomosti reported with reference to the press service of the group of companies. The buyer will be the Hong Kong company Fusion Factor Fintech Limited, owned by Qiwi CEO Andrey Protopopov. The deal, worth 23.75 billion rubles, has already been approved by Russian regulatory authorities and the board of directors of Qiwi Plc.
Image source: Qiwi
The group's Russian assets, consolidated as part of the first stage of restructuring into Qiwi JSC, include Qiwi Bank, Qiwi Wallet, Qiwi Business, Contact money transfer system, ROWI group of companies, Realweb group of companies, Flocktory, Taxiaggregator, IntellectMoney and a number other projects.
Their cost was determined taking into account the discount for foreign participation and the existing uncertainty due to the introduction of temporary restrictions by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation on some operations of Qiwi Bank.. JSC “Kiwi” is headed by Protopopov, who will leave the management positions at Qiwi Plc. The international business of the group of companies, including operations in Kazakhstan, the UAE and other countries, will completely transfer to Qiwi plc.
The Board of Directors of Qiwi plc plans, after completion of the transaction, to conduct a buyback of up to 10% of Qiwi plc shares on NASDAQ and MOEX, for approval of which an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders will be convened. Through the business separation, Qiwi plc will retain its current listing on NASDAQ and MOEX, “which is in the strategic interests of the company and all its shareholders.”