News / Voi
Voi shows solidarity with Ukraine while also having links to Russian state
Between midday and 1pm, Voi scooters are currently blinking blue and yellow to show the company’s support for Ukraine.
All of the money that Voi makes during this hour-long period will be donated to the UN Refugee Agency.
But this display of solidarity comes as it has emerged that one of Voi’s major shareholders has close links to the Russian state.
is needed now More than ever
Russian businessman Alexander Eliseev owns shares in Voi worth approximately 138m Swedish Krona, equivalent to £10.8m.
Eliseev is also a major shareholder and the chairman of freight company Globaltruck, which is partly owned by the Russian state through the wealth fund RDIF.
A report in Swedish newspaper Di says that Eliseev has business links with Alexei Mordashov, an oligarch who has been hit by EU sanctions over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Russian State Medical University graduate Eliseev is chairman of multiple companies according to his Wall Street Journal profile.
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Voi CEO Fredrik Hjelm told Swedish website Breakit that he has been in contact with Eliseev.
“We will see how we can technically solve this,” said Hielm.
“It is not the case that a shareholder disappears from the shareholder register overnight, but it takes some time to find a solution or an arrangement that achieves what you want.”
In a statement emailed to Bristol24/7, a Voi spokesperson said: “To ensure consistency with our aims and values as a company, Voi conducts background checks on all our investors before agreeing on terms with them.
“We are currently re-evaluating all our partners in light of the recent developments in Ukraine and will take any and all actions deemed necessary to comply with sanctions. This includes the removal of shareholders should they no longer align with our core values. We will always abide by any laws or sanctions that are in place.
“Alongside many international businesses, we believe Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a severe violation of international law and we stand on the side of democracy and the Ukrainian people at this time.”
Marvin Rees said that Voi e-scooters are “exciting” and “dynamic” – photo: Voi
The trial of Voi’s electric scooter fleet in Bristol has been extended until November.
Bristol mayor Marvin Rees recently appeared in a promotional video for the company, which was first launched in Stockholm in 2018.
Main photo: Martin Booth
Read more:
- Jon Richardson to headline comedy night in aid of Ukraine
- Bristol says ‘Slava Ukraini!’
- City Hall lit blue and yellow in solidarity with Ukraine
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