PRESS: O1 Group’s owner Mints, family leave for London

MOSCOW, May 28 (PRIME) -- Boris Mints, owner of investment company O1 Group, and his family have left Russia for London, Vedomosti business daily reported on Monday citing sources close to the central bank and to a person familiar with a close acquaintance of a shareholder of the company.

Bank Otkritie Financial Corporation, which is going through a bailout by the central bank, previously filed an arbitration suit seeking cancellation of several interrelated deals with O1 Group.

“Mints and all his three sons have left for London…The father Mints and his sons left the country with their families,” Vedomosti reported. One of the sources told the daily that the situation “had become tense,” so it was safer to leave Russia.

O1 Group may transfer its major asset O1 Properties to Cyprus-based Riverstretch Trading & Investments. Sources told Vedomosti that the companies may close the deal in a couple of weeks or in several months.

Representatives of O1 Group and ICT Group, a minority owner of O1 Properties, declined to comment.

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