Executive: TCS Group mulls M&A deals instead of paying 2022 divs

ST. PETERSBURG, Jun 11 (PRIME) -- Russia’s TCS Group, which comprises Tinkoff Bank and Tinkoff Insurance, may not resume paying dividends in 2022 because it may need cash for merger and acquisition deals, Tinkoff Bank Chairman Stanislav Bliznyuk told PRIME on Friday an interview.

TCS Group suspended dividends in March 2021 because it needed money for additional growth. TCS Group CEO Oliver Hughes said then that dividend payments may resume at the beginning of 2022. Under the dividend policy, the company pays up to 30% of the net profit calculated under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in dividends.

“Will there be payments in 2022? It is too early to forecast that now. It will depend on many factors. For instance, it will depend on whether we have new M&A deals, whether we have additional capital in this period, and so on,” Bliznyuk said.

Nevertheless, the company will not revise its dividend policy for the quantity of dividend payments, because it may do so when the money is not needed for corporate growth, he said.

TCS Group suspended dividend payments due to two reasons, he said.

“First, we have some ideas on acquisition of new businesses. We are studying several companies in detail now. But we need capital for M&A deals, this is why we have frozen dividends for now to accumulate some ‘fat’ for possible deals. The second reason is that Tinkoff is actively growing, this is why it is better to invest in expansion,” he said.

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