GC “MigCredit” became the largest private microfinance organization last year. As the correspondent of The Moscow Post managed to find out, threads stretch from her to a conflict between the largest entrepreneurs and bankers of our country.

The names of the head of the largest state bank German Gref and the “toy king” Alexander Mamut “glow” in history. Details are in The Moscow Post.

MigCredit belongs to Denum LLC, which, in turn, is registered with the Cyprus offshore MIGCREDIT HOLDINGS LIMITED. The board of directors of the latter includes Marina Grönberg.

The key beneficiary of MigCredit is businessman Alexander Mamut, known as the owner of the Hamleys network (a business related to the sale of children’s toys).

Marina Grönberg is a citizen of Switzerland and Sweden and heads the Hemma Group. This office was previously called Lynwood.

Was yours – became ours

And it was Lynwood in 2015 that was transferred the rights (subsequently withdrawn) to protect the interests of the Rambler Group (at that time owned by Mamut). That is, the merchant, in fact, transferred one of the key capabilities of the company to a kind of “left”, but in fact, it seems, personal, office. It seems that already at this stage Mamut could be suspected of uncleanliness, but for some reason this did not catch the eye of the future buyer of the Rambler Group.

Later, these rights were used to prove the alleged infringement of Rambler’s copyright by its former employee. And already when Mamut sold the asset. The copyright story is important for understanding the essence of the conflict that we mentioned at the beginning.

Its essence is that Pavel Sysoev, an employee of Rambler, developed Nginx, and Rambler, when the latter “shot” and began to make a profit, decided that the company should have the rights to develop. More precisely, it was decided not by Rambler, but by Lynwood, which filed a corresponding application with law enforcement agencies. What is it, if not an attempt to “squeeze out” the development – it is difficult to explain.

As a result, in 2019, Sysoev and a number of his colleagues were even searched. And then the interesting began.

The Rambler denied knowing about Lynwood’s plans. German Gref, the head of Sberbank, who shortly before bought half of Rambler from Alexander Mamut, said that Rambler did not notify Sberbank of the conflict in the sale of the asset, although it should have. It seems that someone simply looked at the documentation poorly, or maybe they knew about this outcome, but did not do anything?

It seems that all persons connected with the state bank tried to abstract from history to the maximum in order to shift the responsibility for what was happening to Grönberg, and through her, probably, to Mr. Mamut.

There is a feeling that Mamut tried to circle Gref around his finger. Having transferred in advance the rights of claim to a possibly affiliated company. So “Rambler” seemed to remain out of business and, accordingly, did not receive anything. And it seems that this provoked the righteous anger of Mr. Gref.

On the other hand, the question arises: could the head of the state bank be unaware that the company he bought back in 2015 was preparing the ground for an attempt to “take over” Sysoev’s brainchild? Perhaps he and Mamut simply did not agree on the price?

Divorce like a man

As a result, Gref, apparently, decided that the case did not work out, and Rambler turned to law enforcement agencies with a request to stop the case against Nginx at the request of Lynwood, although he did not immediately decide that he would give up his own claims against the company. Later, German Gref personally met with Sysoev, they reached some agreements, and the court dismissed the case for lack of corpus delicti.

In the same period, Rambler “fell out” with Lynwood, terminating the contract with the company to protect the latter’s interests. But Mamut, it seems, decided not to stop and Lynwood filed a lawsuit against the owner of Nginx, the American F5 Networks, Nginx itself, its co-founders Igor Sysoev and Maxim Konovalov, as well as those who invested in Runa Capital and E. Ventures (who invested in their founded by them to promote Nginx office). As a result, the court, of course, refused them and the case faded.

Later, Mamut’s Hamleys were tried to be expelled on a formal basis (due to the fact that the price policy of Hamleys no longer corresponded to the level of this object) from the Central Children’s Store (TsDM, former “Children’s World”), where they occupied the area. Recall that the shares of Detsky Mir are also owned by Sberbank. The gesture is very eloquent.

Chosen by bankers

Mr. Mamut also has another “splice” with big financiers. Through the same “MigCredit”: the company was the founder of the now liquidated due to re-registration in SRO “MIR” NP “MIR”. Also a microfinance contra, engaged, according to RBC, “representing and protecting the common property interests of microfinance organizations, coordinating their business activities, assisting microfinance organizations that are its members in expanding and developing microfinance activities.”

An amusing coincidence – one of the main persons of the company was a Mr. by the name of Mamuta – Mikhail Valeryevich. During the period when he was chairman of the board of the NP, he worked at the Central Bank.

First, he was the head of the Main Directorate of the Microfinance Market and Financial Inclusion Methodology of the Bank of Russia. Then he went to the heads of the Service for the Protection of Consumer Rights and Ensuring the Accessibility of Financial Services of the Bank of Russia. And subsequently became a member of the Board of Directors of the Bank of Russia.

Thus, it turns out that Mamut at least had direct connections in the Central Bank. Didn’t they help “MigCredit” become the leader of the segment?

At the same time, if we judge impartially, based on the financial performance of the company, then we cannot speak of its excellent position in terms of sustainability. According to Rusprofile, the organization is dependent on third-party creditors. It has a risk of loss of independence, a high share of borrowed capital and there is a risk of loss of independence.

And after the re-registration of the NP in the SRO and the appointment of a new person, Eduard Arutyunyan, to the post of head of the company, a flurry of criticism fell upon her. Allegedly, the results of the work did not satisfy the regulators. Later, the leadership changed there – Elena Staratieva became the main one. Also a native of the Central Bank, and the claims “disappeared.”

Relying on bankers in your work seems to be Mamut’s trick. Only here greed in such cases can cost dearly. The hour is not even, they will give the command to raise the “underground” lover of children’s toys. And there are many scandals. What is the story with the company “Investpro”.

The owner of this company was offshore Accles Holdings Limited, which owned almost 7% in Otkritie Holding. And until 2017, the same offshore belonged to Alexander Mamut himself. In 2018, Otkritie FC tried to get 4.7 billion rubles through the Moscow Arbitration Court, which Investpro allegedly owed, but Mamut had already sold the offshore at that time, and nothing could be recovered from him. Although it seems that billions “sailed away” into the “pod” under him. The Moscow Post spoke in detail about this and other stories surrounding the personality of Mamut.

After such situations, the cooperation of bankers with an entrepreneur suggests that they themselves may not be clean-handed. Otherwise, why would they need a comrade in business who can “throw out” another similar “trick”. Which seems to have happened in the story with Nginx, and as a result, neither Gref nor Mamut received anything, and the former also “soiled” his reputation.