Moscow Times
Yota founders Sergei Adonyev and Albert Avdolyan plan to sell their 13.5 percent share in Garsdale Services, the company that owns Skartel and the Yota brand, in another development related to the Megafon-Yota merger, Vedomosti reported Tuesday.
The 13.5 per cent of Garsdale belonging to the pair through equal shares in Telconet Capital, will be sold for about $1.8 billion, a source close to Skartel told Vedomosti. However, it is not clear whether the amount includes the $500 million company debt.
Garsdale fully owns Skartel with its brand Yota and 50 percent plus 100 shares of one of the country’s largest mobile operators, Megafon.
For Adonyev and Avdolyan it is simply a convenient time to exit Garsdale, said Timur Nigmatullin, an analyst from Investcafe. It is likely that the deal directly relates to Megafon’s decision to purchase Yota, he added.
It is likely that Megafon will buy Skartel from Garsdale, and the latter will use the funds to buy out Adonyev and Avdolyan, Vedomosti reported.