A court in Altai Krai (Russia) is hearing a case on securing the judgement of the International Commercial Arbitration Court at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation against the region-biggest non-governmental media holding that was filed by the holding’s investors.
The management of “Altapress” media holding have repeatedly publicly declared its responsibility and decency, issues of finance including, specifically of absence of any appreciable influences and injections of money into their media holding from foreign organizations. However, the financial problems that arose happened to have revealed certain relationship that few would have known about in other circumstances.
In 2008, “Altapress” media holding entered into a loan agreement with Media Development Investment Fund for $ 2,250,000 at a rate of 8.5 per annum with monthly interest accrual.
In March 2016, MDIF transferred its rights to receive reimbursement of “Altapress” credit obligations to Parnassus Assets B.V. (Denmark) represented by Mr. E. Sandal. In 2019 Parnassus Assets B.V. filed a claim with the International Commercial Arbitration Court for the loan repayment by the borrower.
Yuri Purgin, managing director of “Altapress” media holding, a few years earlier, when the issue of debt arose, asserted that “all loans were repaid”.
However, it turned out that the credit was not reimbursed. And today, when partners demand repayment of the loans with the accrued interest, the reputed Russian media company is devising a plan to create another legal entity “AltPrint LLC” with assets transferred from “Altapress” with a view to declare bankruptcy.
These “moves” with the change of legal entity are implemented to avoid the creditor’s claims with minimal costs for themselves, and, most likely, find answers somewhere in the legal area. But esteem and reputation are concepts of a different order. Frustratingly, they must be often sacrificed to please the “golden calf”.
What do we know about “Altapress” media holding
Media holding was established in the city of Barnaul (Altai Krai, Russia) in 1990 — the first issue of the “Svobodny Kurs” (tr. Free Course) newspaper was published. The next year, 1991, the project of an advertising and information newspaper “Kupi-Prodai” (tr. Buy-Sell) was launched, and in 1996 – a regional supplement to the newspaper “Argumenty i Fakty” (tr. Arguments and Facts).
In 1997, “Altapress” acquired a printing complex for color sheet printing, which became the basis of the printery.
In 1998, “Altapress” acts as a publisher of the regional newspaper “Molodezh Altaia” (tr. Youth of Altai) and registers the magazine “Telepark”.
In 2000, the company acquired the newspaper “Marker-Express” and in 2001 it published “Vashe Delo” (tr. Your Case).
In 2003, media holding publishes the first glossy magazine “Ya pokupau” (tr. I buy). In 2006, “Radio 22” began broadcasting.
In 2014 Altapress.ru launched an interactive project Pavodok.altapress.ru. The project is a map on which each user can add their stories, photographs and videos of the floods that occurred in the Altai Krai and the Altai Republic.
In January 2016, Yuri Purgin, managing director of “Altapress” media holding, was elected president of the Altai regional public organization “Demidov Fund”.
In February 2016, the company sold a legal entity for which the “Silver Rain in Barnaul” radio station (“Radio 22”) and the frequency 106.4 FM were registered. It was reported that the asset was acquired by a private investor from Moscow, and “Altapress” planed to invest the proceeds from the transaction in the development of Internet projects.
