RDIF, Mail.ru, MegaFon, USM, Ant agree to set up pay, fincl JVs

MOSCOW, Feb 12 (PRIME) -- The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), tech giant Mail.ru Group, mobile operator MegaFon, diversified holding company USM, and Ant Group, an affiliate of China’s Alibaba Group, have signed binding documents to set up two joint ventures in payment and financial spheres, Mail.ru Group said on Friday in a statement.

The joint ventures will offer digital payment solutions and financial services, designed to help people save while paying for goods and services in the burgeoning e-commerce segment.

Mail.ru Group will contribute to the payments joint venture the assets worth 4.5 billion rubles – 100% of non-bank settlement credit institution Money.Mail.ru and payment system VK Pay, which will remain financial and payment tools of Mail.ru Group’s ecosystem. The group will be the largest shareholder in the payments joint venture with 40%.

Mail.ru Group will also invest 870 million rubles in the financial services joint venture to get 5.95% in it.

USM’s contribution into the financial services joint venture will include a 100% stake in ASK Renessans, a 100% stake in Round Bank, a 100% stake in InPlat, other assets and cash.

Other shareholders, including Ant Group, RDIF and MegaFon, will contribute cash, assets or a combination of cash and assets into the joint ventures.

A committee of the board was formed to oversee the progress of the deals. The committee received third party assessments from Deloitte and fairness opinion from UBS AG London Branch. UBS acted as the financial adviser and provided a fairness opinion to Mail.ru Group in connection with the transactions.

The deals are expected to close in 2021 after satisfying a number of conditions, including third party approvals. Upon completion, Russian shareholders will own majority stakes in both joint ventures.

(73.7579 rubles – U.S. $1)

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