Financial Crime World

Title: Croatian Authorities Investigate Potential Sanctions Violations in Fortenova Transaction

Croatian Government Unaware of Recent Fortenova Share Transaction

During a press briefing on Thursday, Croatia’s Foreign Ministry announced that no Croatian state authority or the government was involved in a recent Fortenova share transaction, which could potentially violate international sanctions.

  • No Involvement from Croatian State Authorities or Government Croatia’s State Secretary Frano Matušić revealed that the Croatian government would request information from other entities to ensure that there had been no breach of the sanctions regime.

Investigation into Arab Investor and Possible Russian Capital

Matușić addressed concerns about an Arab investor serving as a cover for Russian capital in Fortenova, stating that this possibility was under investigation.

  • Sale of Sberbank’s Stake in Fortenova Matušić explained that since Russia’s Sberbank had been added to the sanctions list, it was prohibited from disposing of its assets. The sale of Sberbank’s stake in Fortenova was granted exceptions until October 31.
  • Transaction Hindered by AZ Pension Fund Two requests had been made to buy shares in Fortenova. One from Indotech, which was processed by Fortenova, and the other from Croatian pension funds, aiming to become co-owners in Fortenova. Although all approvals were given, the transaction was hindered by the AZ pension fund declining to participate, rendering the approvals invalid.
  • Transfer of Ownership Requires Approval from Dutch Company Kroll Matušić noted that the transfer of ownership in this case required approval from the Dutch company Kroll and mentioned that approval was also required for a transaction between United Arab Emirates investors. He added that both the Dutch authorities and relevant English authorities were to be contacted for details on the matter.

Potential Sanctions Violations and EU Regime

“We are investigating whether the EU sanctions regime has been violated, which would carry certain consequences,” Matušić said. He also acknowledged that Fortenova’s operations remained unaffected.

Croatian Involvement in the Case

With regard to possible Croatian involvement in the case, Matušić shared that he would be meeting with the Security and Intelligence Agency but did not expect a local citizen to be implicated.