Warner Music Group, owned by Ukrainian-born billionaire Len Blavatnik, has invested much more in Russia than any of its larger competitors.
Sources say he did not advise Access or Warner executives on whether to pull out of Russia and he has not made any public statements directly denouncing Putin for the invasion of his former homeland. Blavatnik, who rarely gives interviews or makes statements to journalists, did not respond to a request made to Access for his personal comment, but Access did describe its position as a business.
Warner Music and Sony, which has about 35 employees in Russia, are both effectively placing their employees on paid leave for the time being, according to people familiar with the situation. In a statement, Warner Music said its pullout included suspending investments in and development of projects in Russia, along with promotional and marketing activities and manufacturing of all physical products.
of sanctions against seven Russian oligarchs, collectively worth £15 billion , which edged closer to Blavatnik’s circle of influence with the Kremlin.Roman Abramovich, a leading industrialist with whom Blavatnik, along withFor both Deripaska and Abramovich, the government is prohibiting transactions on U.K. individuals and businesses, and imposing a travel ban and sanctioning transport.
Blavatnik’s childhood friend Vekselberg, who was also born in Ukraine, recruited him do business deals for formerly Soviet-owned assets that were being freed up during the years whenwas Russia’s president. The two later also worked with Deripaska to purchase aluminum-production assets. Both Deripaska and Vekselberg are reported to be close to Putin, who has been president of Russia, on and off, since 2000.
Using his fortune originally made in Russia, Blavatnik’s Access has diversified its holdings into entertainment and music. He was an early investor in Beats Electronics’ streaming platform , which later became Beats Music. In 2016, he created Access Entertainment, which has invested in films, television and theatre.led a private equity buyout of the company from Time Warner Inc. Although he stepped down from the board in 2008, Blavatnik retained a 2% stake in Warner Music.
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