Russian billionaire Mikhail Friedman, who is a co-owner of Russia’s Alfa Group, and investor Herman Khan wanted to buy Ukraine’s Monobank for $ 1 billion, but were denied.
Ukraine, Ukraingate , 13, November , 2021 , Economy
“Investors came to us, you read the press … There were intensive negotiations. Our party is not yet ready for the transaction. It was an interest that led to our reflection. But our readiness was insufficient, ”said the chairman of the supervisory board of Universal Bank, whose banking license is operated by monobank Popenko.
According to monobank co-founder Oleg Gorokhovsky, the partners could not agree among themselves. He said in August that the project already cost more than $ 1 billion and was not for sale. Popenko considers such an assessment justified. In his opinion, the project should be evaluated by multipliers not of banks, but of technology companies.
“If we use the profit multiplier, which is 6 even in Ukraine, the value of mono will be 1 billion. Being a zero asset three years ago, monobank now serves more than four million customers and has the second largest retail portfolio in the country after Privatbank. When there is such a successful history, the country’s market and risk are secondary. Investors are ready to invest in such companies for any multipliers, ”Popenko said.
Forbes estimates Friedman’s fortune at 15.5 billion and Khan’s at 10 billion. They rank 11th and 18th in the ranking of the richest Russians. In Ukraine, they own Alfa Bank Ukraine, Kyivstar, the largest telecom operator, and IDS Borjomi (Morshynska and Myrhorod brands).
Let’s add
The monobank project was created by Fintech Band, founded by former top managers of Privatbank. He operates under the banking license of Universal Bank Serhiy Tigipko.
Source: Ukrgate
see more: Billionaires from Russia wanted to buy the Ukrainian Monobank
