Technology company Yandex has received bids from Russian billionaires for a stake of approximately half in the company’s local operations, valuing it at over $7 billion, Bloomberg News reported on Friday.
Yandex did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters. Billionaires Vladimir Potanin and Vagit Alekperov have made an offer for at least 51% of control over Yandex’s Russian operations, valuing it at around 560 billion rubles ($7.21 billion) to 600 billion rubles, according to the report, citing people familiar with the matter.
The board of Yandex could discuss the bids next week when it convenes in Dubai, the report added. The Kremlin must sign off on the final group of buyers, according to Bloomberg. Since Moscow sent troops to Ukraine in February 2022, Yandex, often referred to as “Russia’s Google,” has struggled to offset pressure from Western investors.”
