Oerlikon and Sulzer are not affected by the sanctions | company sector

(AWP) Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg is caught in the crosshairs of the United States and sanctioned by the Treasury there. According to their own statements, the Swiss companies are Oerlikon and Sulzer (the sun 74.10 + 0.95%)in which he owns shares, are not affected.

In a new round of sanctions, the United States took action against more aides to Russian President Vladimir Putin over the weekend. In addition to the family of Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov and the board of directors of VTB Bank, the oligarch Viktor Vekselberg is also a member.

The US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a statement on Friday. In this, the authority announced that both the Vekselberg aircraft with tail number P4-MIS and the yacht named Tango will be banned with immediate effect.

The few associated with Switzerland

According to the US Treasury, there are also other requirements related to business transactions with companies controlled by Vekselberg. In Switzerland, the oligarchy owns shares in the industrial groups OC Oerlikon (OERL 7.40 + 2.21%) And Sulzer, Swiss steelmaker (STLN 0.2740 -1.62%) The real estate group Züblin (ACC 26.00 -2.99%).

At the request of the AWP news agency, they are relieved about the latest sanctions. Traditional Winterthur explains, since Vekselberg was first hit with US sanctions in 2018, he has been a minority shareholder in Sulzer, and has been unable to exercise his economic rights.

He may not sell shares nor have access to dividends. Thus, the announced expansion of US sanctions against Vekselberg to include his plane and yacht will not affect Sulzer.

Oerlikon is also unaffected

The situation in Oerlikon is somewhat more complicated. Its main shareholder is Liwet Holding and neither Liwet nor Oerlikon is currently on the US sanctions list, Oerlikon wrote in a statement.

Specifically, Liwet currently owns 41% of Oerlikon and Vekselberg in turn owns – indirectly – less than 50% of Liwet. “The recent US sanctions against Mr. Victor Vekselberg do not affect Oerlikon,” a company spokesperson said.

Vekselberg lives in the canton of Zug. He was on the US sanctions list in 2018 because of his links to the Russian leadership. Attempts to influence the US Department of Justice with the support of business leaders have so far been unsuccessful.