Loophole allowing for control over strategic enterprises by-passing law will be closed - Artemyev
MOSCOW. April 4 (Interfax) - The possibility of controlling Russian strategic enterprises through shareholder agreements by-passing the law on foreign investments in the strategic industries will be closed, Federal Anti-Monopoly Service Director Igor Artemyev said.
Amendments to the appropriate law discussed by the government on Thursday envision that, he said.
The bill "specifies the appropriate definition of agreements. We understand very well that you can have control through shares and you can have [control] through agreements, for example, through shareholder agreements. Thanks to these shareholder agreements, the real owners of companies, those who issue binding instructions are often totally different people, not those who formally control 51% of the shares," Artemyev told a government meeting on Thursday.
Artemyev earlier said Chinese and some other foreign companies control fish limits in the Russian Far East through agreements without having a controlling share in companies directly.