/ world today news/ NRA employees are carefully checking the income and expenses of a number of companies related to Ivo Prokopiev, as well as himself as an individual. This was learned by the spokesperson of the institution, Rosen Bachvarov.
At the end of December launched 11 inspections of companies and publishing houses related to the “Capital” circle.
The scope of the inspection includes the publishing group “Iconomedia” AD, the “Capital” Foundation and several companies from the structure of “Alfa Finance Holding”. In addition, Prokopiev himself and his wife Galya, who manages part of his media business, will also be subject to checks as individuals.
The auditors are doing a full audit of the cash flow of the oligarch and his wife. It will include, in addition to the property they have acquired over 7 years, and the sums they have splashed out on world travel and the luxurious lifestyle they demonstrate. It will also show how much money has been spent servicing their loans. The tax authorities will also check every lev that has entered and exited the family’s companies, as well as whether they are hiding profits.
“At the moment, the checks are ongoing and for this reason I cannot give you information about them before they are finally finished,” Bachvarov told PIK. The civil servant clarified that the legal term of the inspections will be respected.
One of the inspections is regarding the “Kaolin” plant.
According to an investigation by “Reporter”, Ivo Prokopiev agreed with the German Quarzwerke for the sale of shares in “Kaolin”, over which he had no control.
The deal was signed behind the backs of the small shareholders in the Bulgarian mining company and to the detriment of their interests. As a result, the German company received part of “Kaolin” as a gift, and the small owners were deprived of about BGN 11 million, the publication claims.
At the end of December 2012, “Kaolin”, which is a public company, announced to the Bulgarian Stock Exchange that its main owner “Alfa Finance Holding” of Prokopiev had agreed with Quarzwerke on the sale of the majority stake of 67.32%. However, what both Prokopiev and Kaolin are saving the minority shareholders and the investment community is that the deal with Quarzwerke is not actually for 67.32%, but for 72.64%.
According to sources well acquainted with the progress of the negotiations, in the final version of the sales contract between “Alfa Finance Holding” and Quarzwerke, the share of the subsidiary company of “Kaolin” – “Solar Ventures” is also sold. A contract which, however, has been thoroughly criticized by both parties and was even refused to be granted in the Financial Supervision Commission.
Without the knowledge and approval of the other shareholders in “Kaolin”, Prokopiev disposed of the assets of the subsidiary – “Solar Ventures”. Thus, a deal that the Board of Directors of “Alfa Finance Holding” defined as “one of the most successful in the history of the Bulgarian capital market” begins to smell strong.
The first and foremost question is how can a seller and a buyer agree on something that is not actually the property of the seller. Because at the time of signing the contract – December 20, 2012, “Alfa Finance Holding” did not have control over “Solar Ventures”.
Prokopiev’s holding company has full control over Kaolin, but does not own the subsidiary company. How successful such a sale can be depends on the answer to this question. The second issue is related to the administrative approval of the transaction. How was such a deal with such a controversial contract text ever approved by the control institutions in our country? It received the approval of the Commission for the Protection of Competition, but this body mainly monitors the extent of concentration and possible distortion of the market. Therefore, hardly anyone has dealt with who and what kind of control has over “Solar Ventures”.
Written in this way, the contract directly aims to circumvent the imperative provisions of Art. 114 of the Law on Public Offering of Securities. It limits the possibilities for persons who manage and represent a public company to carry out transactions without being expressly authorized to do so by the general meeting. Since after the acquisition of control over “Kaolin” Quarzwerke and “Solar Ventures” are already in the situation of related parties, the transaction should be approved by the remaining shareholders in the Bulgarian mining company.
In order to solve this “small problem” and to crush the rights of the minority shareholders, Prokopiev first sold the shares in “Kaolin” to “Solar Ventures”, and only then his own, owned through “Alfa Finance Holding”. All this happens in one day – May 31. Thus, the Germans get trouble-free control over nearly 73% of the Bulgarian public company. For this additional share of 5.3%, they pay about BGN 11 million. But the exchange along the axis “Alfa Finance” – “Kaolin” – Quarzwerke does not stop here, “Reporter” claims.
As soon as they acquired Kaolin and took possession of it, the new German owners sold 100% of the capital to Solar Ventures. The buyer is Prokopiev through “Alfa Finance Holding”. According to people familiar with the text in the apocryphal contract between Prokopiev and Quarzwerke, this transaction is also part of the formal arrangements between buyer and seller. The aim was that after the sale “Solar Ventures” would leave the economic group of “Kaolin” in order to avoid the concentration proceedings by KPK.
The price of this transaction has not been announced, but according to sources from the financial circles, it is about the same BGN 11 million. Thus, Prokopiev actually returns the cash from the sale of the shares of “Kaolin” to “Solar Ventures” to the new owners. This means that the books are literally free for the new owners. But actually the big problem is not whether they are free or not, but that they were sold by Prokopiev without him owning them.
However, “Solar Ventures” is not the first time Prokopiev has used it to take away shares from the remaining shareholders in “Kaolin”. In 2010, the mining company decided to separate its business with renewable energy sources into a new public company – “Solarpro Holding”. “Kaolin” shareholders can convert 1/16 of their shares into “Solarpro Holding” securities. But for this purpose, there must be someone to give their shares in “Solarpro Holding”. It is exactly in this role that “Solar Ventures” enters. With the procedure chosen in this way, 1/16 of their share is taken from the shareholders in “Kaolin”, which goes to “Kaolin” itself (this 5.3% of the capital).
Due to the many questionable circumstances surrounding Prokopiev’s latest deal – with Quarzwerke – the Financial Supervisory Commission has requested the help of the German Financial Regulatory Authority (VaFin), which will also deal with the case. And while the entire investigation took place, the FSC once again imposed a ban on the German owners making a tender offer to the remaining shareholders in “Kaolin”. The reason is that the proposal creates substantial uncertainty for the rights and interests of minority shareholders.
The deal on the sale of “Kaolin” brought another blow to Prokopiev.
A recent journalistic investigation showed how offshore companies connecting the business interests of Prokopiev and President Rosen Plevneliev managed to divert BGN 7 million to Cyprus. This happened through a series of transfers of shares in “Kaolin” between the funds of “Doverie”, “Alfa Finance Holding” and the offshore companies Wyclef holding limited and Stallberg investments limited.
At the end of the lightning trading, which took place within a few hours, the Cypriot companies guaranteed themselves a profit of millions of BGN, and against the asset from the sold shares the creditors of Prokopiev and “Alfa Finance” were left with a glass of cold water.
Before participating in the scheme to divert money to offshore accounts, Wyclef holding and Stallberg investments had suspiciously close ties with Rosen Plevneliev.
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