Putin supported the transfer of the United Shipbuilding Corporation VTB

President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with Andrei Kostin that he supported the government’s proposal to transfer shares of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) to VTB. Now the state owns 100% of the shares. The head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Denis Manturov, later specified that 100% of the USC shares would be transferred to VTB in trust for 5 years.

“I support this proposal. I know that your colleagues also talked about this with you, worked it out in advance. I would like to hear your reaction on this matter,” Mr. Putin said.

“Vladimir Vladimirovich, the reaction is thank you for the trust. When I heard about it for the first time, it was, of course, quite unexpected,” replied Mr. Kostin.

The head of VTB noted that the bank knows USC well from the very beginning of its creation. VTB “works closely” with both the corporation and its affiliates, so it is aware of “problems, especially with regard to the organization of financing.” Mr. Kostin is sure that with the support of the president, the bank “will cope with this task and will make every effort to solve all the problems.” “There are many tasks there, especially in the current conditions, but, in my opinion, all of them are solvable,” Mr. Kostin added.

The President agreed with the opinion of the head of VTB that USC “has many problems and many questions.” “But this is a working structure and, on the whole, is gaining momentum in this work,” he added. According to him, there are issues that require special attention, including from the bank’s specialists. “This is connected with the calculations, with the financial recovery of the company. Everything, of course, cannot be done without the support of the government, and such support, of course, must be provided by the government,” Putin added.

The details were revealed to journalists by Deputy Prime Minister, head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov. According to him, 100% of the shares will be transferred to trust management for a period of five years. “The ministry, together with the interested federal executive authorities, will soon agree on the necessary regulatory documentation,” said Mr. Manturov (quoted from TASS). The departments must prepare a government decree on submitting a draft of the relevant decree for consideration by the president.

USC noted that the corporation was established in 2007 by presidential decree with 100% of the shares in federal ownership. “The trust management of shares does not change the form of ownership and obligations under existing contracts, including the execution of the state defense order and the construction of civil projects,” the USC said in a statement received by Kommersant. The corporation noted that shipbuilding is “in a phase of growth, which requires ensuring financial stability and investment in the modernization of production facilities.”

VTB draws attention to the fact that any actions on the part of the bank will be possible only after the government agrees on the procedure and implementation of the procedure for transferring shares to trust management. “We are convinced that corporate changes should in no way affect the corporation’s obligations to customers, cooperation, employees: the continuity of the shipbuilding holding’s business is an absolute priority,” the bank’s commentary, which entered Kommersant, says.