Russian Oligarch, Major TUI Shareholder, Resigns From Group's Board

Russian oligarch Alexey Mordashov, the largest shareholder of German-based tourism group TUI AG, has resigned from its supervisory board after being sanctioned by the European Union with an asset freeze and a travel ban, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"The aim of the EU sanctions is to prevent Mr. Mordashov from disposing of his shares in TUI. This is to prevent Mr. Mordashov from realizing any proceeds or profits from his investment," the company said.

Mr. Mordashov owns 34% of TUI, with the remainder controlled by investors from Germany, the EU, the U.K. and the U.S. A vocal supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin, he is based in Moscow and also serves as chairman of Russian steelmaker Severgroup, where he holds a majority stake.

The European Council said that in 2017, Mr. Mordashov had a 5.4 percent stake in Bank Rossiya, which is considered the personal bank of senior Russian government officials.

“Furthermore, Severgroup has considerable stakes in the National Media Group, which in turn controls television stations which actively support the Russian government’s policies of destabilization of Ukraine,” the Council said.

Severgroup also owns JSC Power Machines, which was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department in 2018 over its role in the Russian takeover of Crimea.

"Therefore, it is also responsible for providing financial and material support, and benefiting from Russian decision-makers responsible for the annexation of Crimea and the destabilization of Ukraine," the Council said.