Just not VK – the owner of Avito is looking for buyers of the advertising service

According to Bloomberg, Prosus decided in May to ditch Russian assets and put Avito up for sale. VK and "a structure associated with businessman Vladimir Potanin" are mentioned as the main contenders for the purchase. The Dutch company also decided to sell its 25.7% stake in VK.

The Bell, citing six sources "familiar with the negotiations," reports that Avito's owner is actively trying to avoid a deal with VK and is looking for other buyers.

The first reason is economic. The publication reports on VK's offer of 65-80 billion rubles, or $1.2-1.5 billion at the current exchange rate, while Prosus wants about $4 billion, or 213 billion rubles, for your asset. Bloomberg even wrote about the requested amount of $6 billion.

The cost of the transaction may also be affected by United Russia MP Anton Gorelkin's initiative to limit to 20% the maximum share of foreign ownership in Russian free advertising services with a monthly audience of 10 million users or more. The document was submitted to the State Duma.

The second reason for VK's possible refusal is political. VK's largest shareholders are Sogaz and Gazprombank, which are under sanctions. Vladimir Kiriyenko, CEO of the IT holding company, son of the first deputy head of the presidential administration, Sergei Kiriyenko, is also under sanctions.

"This is a company with a large capitalization and assets traded in 'unfriendly' countries," the source told The Bell. "Avito's top management may also be afraid of a takeover by VK and a loss of efficiency."