Sberbank may become a co-owner of the Rambler Group, the Internet holding of Alexander Mamut , the companies have almost agreed on the deal and may announce it in the near future. According to several sources close to the parties to the transaction, Sberbank and Rambler Group agreed on the conditions for entering the bank’s structures in the capital of the Internet holding, and the bank’s management approved the transaction.
“The parties are negotiating the acquisition by Sberbank of a substantial stake, but below the controlling stake, to enrich their ecosystem with the best digital media and entertainment services,” one source explained.
The press services of Sberbank and the Rambler Group confirmed the “fact of negotiations”, refusing additional comments.
According to sources, the priority for Sberbank investments is the development of the Okko online cinema, which came under the control of the Rambler Group in the spring of 2018. The online cinema shows good financial performance – in 2018, its revenue grew by 81% to 2.5 billion rubles.
The Rambler Group includes online media Gazeta.Ru, Lenta.Ru and Championat.com, Rambler News Services agency, Livejournal.com blog platform, Rambler portal, Afisha.ru service, Okko online cinema, Cinema Park “And” Formula Kino “(631 rooms in 75 cinemas).
In January 2019, the daily audience of all Internet projects and applications of the Rambler Group on desktops and mobile devices approached 4.5 million Russians aged 12–64 years old, living in cities with a population of over 100 thousand people. According to this indicator, the group ranked ninth among all the holdings represented in RuNet (Mail.Ru Group ranked first with 29.9 million, Sberbank was fifth with 9.5 million people).
Recall that in January, Yandex and Rambler Group extended the agreement on Yandex advertising on media resources that make up the Rambler Group. Along with the placement of banner advertising, the agreement also includes various options for monetizing video content at media holding sites.
