Morgan Stanley sale to Rosneft fails to win regulatory approval
RUSSIAN oil firm Rosneft’s deal to buy Morgan Stanley’s oil merchant business has collapsed after United States regulators refused to clear it.
Although the sale of the business was inked before the US and the EU imposed sanctions on Russia over its interference in Ukraine, its collapse had been expected as the political winds changed.
The investment bank said it would now consider a variety of options for the unit. However, the termination of the sale will be a blow to the company as the commodities business has begun to draw more intense regulatory scrutiny in the US.
Meanwhile, Rosneft announced yesterday that it had made a $7bn (£4.5bn) loan repayment.
Rosneft borrowed around $40bn in total from a group of lenders including BNP Paribas, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Citigroup, to buy oil firm TNK-BP in 2013.
Rosneft head Igor Sechin stated that the company did not need to enter the currency market to service its debt, because it generates enough foreign currency earnings.
Sechin added that if the funds, which were requested from the NWF, Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, were received, they would be used for the strategic development of Russian regions.