Mordashov quits Tui supervisory board following EU sanctions

Russian oligarch Alexei Mordashov has resigned from the Tui Group supervisory board after being sanctioned by the EU over his links to Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Tui confirmed the resignation of Mordashov, the group’s largest shareholder, today.

The EU imposed sanctions on Mordashov, whose family owns 34% of Tui, on Monday along with several other wealthy Russians with ties to the regime following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In a statement, Tui repeated its previous insistence that the sanctions had “no impact on the company, customers and employees”.

The group noted: “The aim of the EU sanctions is to prevent Mr Mordashov from disposing of his shares in Tui AG . . . to prevent Mr Mordashov from realising any proceeds or profits from his investment in Tui.

“In this context, Mr Mordashov is resigning from Tui’s supervisory board with immediate effect. He formally declared the resignation of his mandate to the company today.”

Mordashov has been a shareholder in Tui for about 15 years and joined the supervisory board in 2016.

Tui noted in its statement that two thirds (66%) of the group’s shareholders “are private and institutional investors and come from Germany, the EU, the UK and the US”.

It added: “The EU sanctions relate to Mr Mordashov as a person, not to Tui AG, in which he is a shareholder.

“These sanctions against the shareholder have no impact on the company. The operative business of Tui AG is managed by the executive board, as is the case with any German public limited company.”

Mordashov is reportedly Russia’s richest man, the chairman of Russian steelmaker Severstal and of Severgroup which controls TV stations, and owns half of Tele2, one of the largest telecommunications companies in Russia.

A Severstal statement issued on behalf of Mordashov on Monday said: “I fail to understand how these sanctions against me will contribute to the settlement of the dreadful conflict in Ukraine.”

Tui chief executive Fritz Joussen wrote to staff this week saying the effects of the war on Tui were “not the first priority” and the invasion had left him “stunned”.

But he noted the structure of businesses in Germany meant Mordashov had limited influence, saying: “We assume that any restrictions or sanctions against Mr Mordashov will not have any lasting negative consequences for us as a company.”

He added “a solution is not in our hands” but pledged: “We will be true to our values. Tourism stands for international understanding and peaceful exchange across borders and cultures.”

More: Tui chief addresses questions over oligarch shareholder in letter to staff

Tui ‘does not see any impact’ from Russian oligarch shareholder