Marshall Capital sells Rostelecom stake

Private equity firm Marshall Capital Partners has sold its entire 10.7% sake in Russian telco and pay TV provider Rostelecom to Arkady Rotenberg’s Bellared Holdings Limited. 

The deal, which was agreed for undisclosed terms, sees Bellared assume ownership of the stake from Marshall Capital’s Universal Telecom Investments Strategies fund.

Self-made Russian businessman Rotenberg, who, according to Forbes stats has a net worth of some US$1bn and is a childhood friend of Vladimir Putin, will be nominated the Rostelecom board along with two other Bellared Holdings representatives – Nikolai Sabitov and Artem Obolensky.

The composition of the new board will be announced at Rostelecom’s annual general meeting in June.

The news follows reports last month that Russian holding company Onexim, the vehicle of tycoon Mikhail Prokhorov, was also looking to buy the Marshall Capital’s stake in the firm.

Rostelecom claims to be Russia’s largest national telecommunications operator with presence in all Russian regions, more than 9 million fixed-line broadband subscribers and some 6 million pay-TV subscribers.