VTB Capital

Russia's Economy Ministry has chosen three domestic investment banks to organize the privatization of large state companies this year, it said on April 4.

It chose VTB Capital to arrange the privatization of oil company Bashneft, Sberbank CIB for the privatization of diamond miner Alrosa and Renaissance Broker for the privatization of VTB Bank, it said in a statement.

The Bulgarian Competition Protection Commission has given the green light to the acquisition of Vivacom, a key Bulgarian telecoms operator, by Bulgarian businessman Spas Rusev.

The Bulgarian businessman Spas Rusev has reportedly acquired the leading Bulgarian telecommunications company Vivacom after a bidding, which lasted for nearly sixteen hours.

According to media reports, he won the auction by offering EUR 330 M, Darik radio reports.

The other bidder was the Greek businessman Panos Germanos, who is owner of the Olympia Group.

There are two bidders to acquire Bulgaria's Vivacom, in an auction that started Thursday morning and has been going on for more than 12 hours.

Bulgarian daily 24 Chasa wrote Thursday evening it was "nearly a hundred percent certain" the two candidates were Spas Rusev (a Bulgarian) and Panos Germanos (a Greek citizen who joined forces with hedge fund Third Point).

Three potential buyers have placed binding bids for Bulgaria's Vivacom by Thursday's deadline, Sofia-based Capital weekly reported.

The sharp decline in Russia's economy may have almost run its course, official data showed on July 28, slowed by a huge devaluation of the ruble and heavy government spending on anti-crisis measures. 

Recovery prospects are cloudy, however, with many analysts warning of a sluggish rebound at best. 

Tsvetan Vasilev, the main shareholder of Bulgaria's collapsed Corporate Commercial Bank, has denied charges he was running the bank as a Ponzi scheme.

Paris-based LIC33, a private capital investment company, has acquired 43% of Bulgaria's telecommunication operator Vivacom (www.vivacom.bg) and about 91% each of ammunition plant Dunarit (http://www.dunarit.com) and military aircraft repair plant Avionams (

The LIC 33 group, comprising investors from the EU, is acquiring control of Bulgarian telecommunication operator Vivacom and other leading companies in the country, dnevnik.bg reported on Wednesday.

LIC 33 will acquire majority stakes in Vivacom and other Bulgarian companies, according to the news daily. The names of the other companies weren't disclosed.

The present deadlock at Bulgaria's Corporate Commercial Bank is a result of the combination of "weak Bulgarian institutions and frankly unbelievable Bulgarian politics", Forbes magazine wrote Saturday.