PJSC MegaFon: Merger of Svyaznoy and Euroset Creates World's Largest Retail Chain[1] in the Technology Sector

Moscow, Russian Federation (28 April 2018) -Public Joint Stock Company "MegaFon" (LSE: MFON), a pan-Russian operator of digital opportunities, which owns 100% of shares of Euroset Group and SLV Group, the controlling shareholder of Svyaznoy Group, today announced their agreement to merge Svyaznoy and Euroset retail chains. SLV will become the controlling shareholder of the merged company, with PJSC MegaFon obtaining a minority share.

The Combined Company will operate the largest retail chain worldwide in the technology sector by number of stores (more than 5,000) with the mission of increasing the accessibility and consumer understanding of modern high-tech products. For this purpose, more than 30,000 sales consultants will help customers to increase their knowledge of the world of high technologies. The daily footprint in the stores of the Combined Company exceeds two million customers.

Under the terms of the agreement, Lefbord Investment Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of MegaFon, will contribute its 100% interest in Euroset Holding N.V., which owns the operating companies of Euroset, to DTSRetail LTD, a Cyprus company, which will own the operating companies of Svyaznoy. As a result, Lefbord Investment Limited will receive a 25% plus 1 share interest and 2 seats on the Board of Directors of the Combined Company. The parties expect to complete the transaction by mid-May. 

The merger of two leading players in the technology retail market creates additional growth opportunities. The Combined Company aims to launch new products and services, expand business relationships and improve financial performance. The Combined Company will continue to actively develop its own online platform and implement a strategy for omnichannel development. At the end of 2017, revenues from online sales of the combined company amounted to approximately 22 billion rubles.

Sergey Soldatenkov, CEO at MegaFon, said: "Multibrand is a strategically important distribution channel for MegaFon and an important pillar of our digital strategy. We believe that cooperation with a successful multibrand player with a strong brand will help us to develop a deeper understanding of customer needs and improve the quality of our service. We are excited to partner with SLV Group in a transaction that we believe will enable MegaFon to benefit from an experienced and professional management team operating an integrated retail network. We also believe that this merger of Euroset and Svyaznoy is a rational move towards an optimal mobile distribution sector."

Oleg Malis, founder of SLV Group, commented: "This transaction is in line with our strategy, as we see great potential in the combination of physical stores and an online platform. The Combined Company is an educational platform for our clients and is an important element of the digital economy. Every day we speak to millions of people and explain how new technologies enable them to improve their lives. We aim to explain complex products to our clients for them to benefit from understanding and using these products."

For More Information:

PJSC MegaFon  

Investors: Dmitry Kononov   Tel: + 7 926 200 6490                 dkononov@megafon.ru

Director for Investor Relations and M&A

Media: Yulia Dorokhina   Tel: +7 926 510 58 54                 ydorokhina@megafon.ru

Head of Media Relations

SLV Group

Media: Tatiana Voltsinger   Tel: +7 925 910 36 41                volts@solvers.ru

Notes to Editors

MegaFon PJSC operates in all segments of the telecommunications markets in Russia, and in the Republics of Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Tajikistan. MegaFon is a recognized market leader in the provision of mobile data services, was the first operator in Russia to launch commercial operation of a third generation (3G) network and was the first operator in the world to launch commercial operation of an LTE-Advanced (4G) data network. In February 2017, MegaFon acquired a 15.2% equity interest (which represented 63.8% of the voting shares) in Mail.Ru, a leading company in the Russian-speaking internet market. MegaFon is traded on the Moscow Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange under the symbol MFON. Mail.Ru is traded on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol MAIL. Additional information about MegaFon and the products and services provided by the telecom segment can be found at http://www.megafon.ru and information related solely to Mail.Ru can be found at http://www.mail.ru.

SLV Group is a group of companies with a diversified portfolio of assets, founded in Moscow, in 2011 with Mr. Oleg Malis as the major shareholder. SLV Group is the controlling shareholder of the biggest consumer electronic retail chain Svyaznoy. The Group also includes a real estate development company Solvers Estate and the management company of MIBC Moscow City (CITY, PJSC).

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[1]  By the number of stores operating in the network