Foreign insurer eyes Timchenko stake in SOVAG - source
MOSCOW. Jan 18 (Interfax) - Gennady Timchenko could sell his remaining 24.8% stake in German insurer SOVAG, an insurance market source told Interfax.
The source said a foreign insurance company without a presence in the European market was interested in buying Timchenko out. "This deal will give the buyer access to an interesting segment of the international market," the source said.
Russian insurer SOGAZ , which is a SOVAG shareholder, said in a press release on January 11 that Gazprom Germania GmbH had closed a deal to consolidate a 50.1% stake in SOVAG. After completion of the transaction, the SOGAZ share in SOVAG decreased from 50.9% to 25.1%. Volga Resources Investments SICAV-SIF S.A., as a result of the transaction, reduced its shareholding in SOVAG from 49.1% to 24.8% of shares.
Reports have also said that at the beginning of 2015, Timchenko divested his stake in LLC Kordeks, which controls 12.5% of SOGAZ.
Timchenko's Volga Group confirmed for Interfax that there was a deal with Gazprom Germania, but it did not go into detail.
SOVAG, founded in Germany in 1927, specializes in insuring industrial and trade risks. It has been part of the SOGAZ group since 2010.