The important investor Twitter and Facebook had financial ties with two Russian public companies, according to the so-called “Paradise Papers”, promulgated today by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Ukrinform’s Correspondent reports.
“One of the companies, belonging to the Kremlin, VTB Bank,inconspicuously transferred 191 million dollars in the investment fund DST Global, which used these funds for acquisition of a large stake in Twitter in 2011”, according to the documents, promulgated by the investigative journalists.
“Gazprom, the energy giant, controlled by the Kremlin, financed the offshore company, which cooperated with DST Global on large investment in Facebook”, according to the document.
The journalists state that Yuri Milner, the Russian billionaire and founder of DST Global, and other partners received considerable profits, when they sold their shares after the initial public offering of Facebook in 2012 and Twitter in 2013.
“There are no signs that the Kremlin will have influence on Twitter and Facebook, or obtained internal information on the company as the result of investment, related with Milner”, the investigators noted, adding that the ties between former Kremlin’s financial interest in U.S. social media and interference with presidential elections was not refuted.
It was previously known about the financial ties between Milner and Twitter and Facebook; Paradise Papers just disclosed Kremlin’s involvement in these relationships.
