Uralkali stock trades raise eyebrows

Moscow — Recent stock trades before and after the July 30 announcement that OAO Uralkali was pulling out of Belarusian Potash Co. have raised eyebrows, as the action caused potash stocks worldwide to drop. Uralkali confirmed last week that as of Aug. 20 major shareholder Suleiman Kerimov had increased his stake to 21.75 percent from 17.2 percent. Trades that occurred before the July 30 announcement, when shares dropped 19 percent, have garnered the attention of Russia’s Financial Markets Service. Just four days prior to July 30, Alexander Nesis sold his 5.1 percent stake, and just a few weeks earlier Uralkali conducted a buyback from Zelimkhan Mutsoev. However, according to sources contacted by Bloomberg, both trades were a part of existing plans. As of Aug. 20, other major Uralkali shareholders were put as 7 percent by Filaret Galchev, 4.8 percent by Anatoly Skurov, 12.5 percent by Wadge Holdings, and 53.95 percent as a free float, though this includes shares acquired by Uralkali subsidiaries. Wadge is also beneficially owned by Kerimov, Skurov, and Galchev, and has issued bonds to Chengdong Investment Corp. that are exchangeable into 12.5 percent of Uralkali’s ordinary shares. The bonds were issued in 2012 and are mature in 2014.