Kurchenko – Forbes license has not been revoked

Businessman Serhiy Kurchenko said in an interview for Russian Nezavisimaya Gazeta that there are no grounds for termination of the deal on acquisition of the Ukrainian Media Holding (UMH). “Both Boris Lozhkin and I have repeatedly stated that the deal was absolutely transparent and that nobody has any complaints,” said Kurchenko. “Acquisition of the UMH involved highly qualified lawyers, including from major international firms, who structured and arranged the deal in correspondence with provisions of the current law. There are absolutely no grounds for termination of this deal; it has been beneficial for each party.”

He also denied information that Forbes revoked UMH’s license for publishing the magazine. “Naturally, there hasn’t been any license revoking,” said the businessman. “There was a lot of talk around it. The owner of the brand was primarily concerned with unstable situation in the country and had doubts about profitability of the publication in general and expediency of publishing Forbes in crisis conditions. Practice, however, showed that his fears were groundless: the magazine is being published with its rating increasing and audience expanding, while the editorial operates as usual. We are interested in fruitful and long-term cooperation with the founder and I’m convinced the interest is mutual.”

Kurchenko said that UMH operates in its usual regime and that he does not plan to sell his assets even if other market players show particular interest in them.