Former Yukos shareholders failed to sell Stolichnaya and Moskovskaya vodka brands in the Benelux countries

Former Yukos shareholders failed to sell the rights to 18 trademarks in the Benelux countries (Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg), including the Stolichnaya and Moskovskaya vodka brands. The agency reported Bloomberg. In June, the Court of Appeal in The Hague approved their confiscation as compensation for the “politically motivated expropriation” of Yukos in 2003.

According to Bloomberg, the trademark auction attracted only two bids, with the maximum amount offered amounting to €200,000. GML, a financial holding that represents the interests of former Yukos shareholders, rejected the offer. Tim Osborne, chief executive of the holding, said that the company hopes to earn $57-58 billion from the sale of brands.

The criminal prosecution of the owners of Yukos began in 2003. In 2014, an independent arbitration court concluded in 2014 that the expropriation of Yukos was illegal and politically motivated. He awarded the former shareholders compensation in the amount of $50 billion. However, the Russian side did not pay this amount. In this regard, the former shareholders of Yukos put the brands up for auction.

More details – in the material “Former Yukos shareholders smelled compensation”.

Anastasia Larina