Because Meloni stopped a deal by Renziano Carrai
The Meloni government has blocked the sale of the Intelligent Technology company owned by Marco Carrai to the Dutch Nebius which, according to some reconstructions, has relations with the "Russian Google" Yandex, founded by the oligarch Volozh, sanctioned last year by the European Commission
The Meloni government unleashes the golden power and blocks the sale to the Dutch Nebius of Tecnologia Intelligente srl, a newco owned by the Tuscan entrepreneur Marco Carrai.
Since he took office last October, for the first time the executive led by Meloni has exercised the special powers of the golden power legislation: in the crosshairs the Florentine company, active in the design and production of electronic equipment for robotics, founded in last summer at Carrai's.
But why did Palazzo Chigi block the sale of a small Italian company to another Dutch one?
According to what revealed to Reuters by two officials who requested anonymity, the government was concerned about the sale since the activities of Nebius were funded by Yandex. That is the Russian tech giant founded by Arkady Volozh, who resigned as CEO last year and left the board of directors after the EU included him in its list of sanctions against Russian entities and individuals. Yandex is not subject to Western sanctions but has been on the verge of default since last year and has embarked on a restructuring project.
All the details.
WHAT DOES INTELLIGENT TECHNOLOGY SRL
Active since 28 July 2022, the Florentine company Tecnologia Intelligente srl operates in the research and development of IT solution software, social networks and products and services related to artificial intelligence, as can be seen from the corporate purpose.
The founder of Tecnologia Intelligente is Marco Carrai, the entrepreneur and personal friend of Matteo Renzi, with whom he "shared the judicial hardships for the investigation into the Open Foundation", recalls the online newspaper Open .
As can be read in the chamber of commerce registration, the company's purpose is the development, production and marketing of innovative products or services with high technological value and more specifically: research and development of software it solutions, social networks and products and services related to Ia; the development of computing platforms, development of robotics, conception, design, development of drones and similar technology; information services, creation and development of e-commerce and cloud platforms; the provision of consultancy services in the information technology sector and in the development, maintenance and possible commercialization of innovative software.
Last autumn, the founder, sole shareholder and sole director Marco Carrai notified the new Meloni government of the sale of Tecnologia Intelligente to the Dutch Nebius BV.
THE DPCM THAT BLOCKS THE SALE TO THE DUTCH COMPANY
But the Meloni government invoked golden power to block the operation by signing the Dpcm of 16 March 2023, containing the exercise of special powers, of opposition to the purchase.
Il Fatto reports that “Nebius had signed an agreement with TI to acquire the entire share capital (10 thousand euros) of the Srl established last July by Carrai, to then finance the “Russian Google” with 2 million.
WHAT DOES NEBIUS BV
As stated on the website , Nebius BV is located at Fernandelstraat 10, 1325GD Almere, The Netherlands. “Combining “nebula”, the Latin word for cloud, with a reference to the infinite Möbius strip, our name embodies our belief in the infinite possibilities offered by cloud technologies” always reads the Nebius company website.
According to the Fact , Nebius had been established a month before TI and administered by a Dutch citizen, Alfred Alexander de Cuba, born in the Netherlands Antilles and residing at the same address as Nebius, in Almere, a few kilometers from Amsterdam. Nebius has only one shareholder – de Cuba – and has no employees.
Al Fatto , Carrai explained that “Nebius is building a unique artificial intelligence technology for Europe, which does not exist today. We will set up a research center where patents will be made: there is a contract for which we must carry out research and development. TI deals with artificial intelligence: some of the best data scientists, mathematicians and engineers in the world will work there”.
WHAT DOES YANDEX HAVE TO DO WITH IT?
Again according to the reconstruction of the Fatto Quotidiano , “Nebius would have paid Carrai only the 10 thousand euros of the capital, but the agreement provided that he would then finance the development of the Srl with a loan of 2 million disbursed by Yandex. The founder and CEO of "Russian Google", the oligarch Arkady Volozh, was sanctioned last June by the European Commission".
Yandex said Nebius was part of its Dutch holding company but declined to comment further to Reuters .
Founded in 1997, Yandex spent years cultivating an image that was far enough removed from the Kremlin to be considered a safe investment.
The company's search engine is the largest of its kind in Russia, accounting for more than 60% of the country's internet searches in the last quarter of 2021, according to the company. In addition, the group has diversified its products in recent years. The company also offers ride-hailing services in several EU countries as well as a food delivery service.
The company began trading on the New York Nasdaq Stock Exchange in May 2011. But last February, the Nasdaq suspended trading of its shares , the move causing Yandex's market capitalization to fall to $6.8 billion. compared to more than $30 billion a year earlier.
FOUNDED BY RUSSIAN OLICARCH VOLOZH
Often referred to as "Russia's Google," Yandex was founded by Arkady Volozh, who stepped down as CEO last year and left the board after the EU included him in its sanctions list against entities. and Russian individuals. At the moment Yandex is not subject to Western sanctions. ( Here Startmag 's insight into how Yandex (Russian Google) seeks an escape route from Western sanctions) .
WHAT NEBIUS WRITES ABOUT RELATIONS WITH YANDEX
“We have more than 10 years of experience building complex IT solutions and technologies from scratch. The roots of Nebius go back to Yandex, one of the leading technology companies in Europe, whose time-tested technologies have been adapted for international markets,” says Nebius itself on its website.
“Nebius now operates as a standalone global company with its own engineering hubs in the Netherlands, Germany, Serbia and Israel,” the company continues.
As Reuters reports, Nebius had planned to build an R&D center in Italy to attract the best tech talent from Russia and elsewhere, said Danila Shtan, one of Nebius' key developers. “Our Dutch holding company is in the process of divesting its Russian assets – unfortunately, this is not a quick process,” Shtan said. "But hopefully when it's completed, we can go back to focusing on technology instead of visas."
DUTCH OR RUSSIAN SOCIETY?
Indeed Yandex has its registered office in the Netherlands but has its main offices in Russia; on its search engine site, in the “Yandex Terms of Service” window it says that the services are provided by Yandex LLC, a company, located at: 16 Lva Tolstogo Street, 119021 Moscow, Russia.
The Florentine entrepreneur, a friend of former prime minister Renzi, had repeatedly reiterated that “Yandex is Dutch and has US funds among its major shareholders. The money is not Russian”, although he later admitted that he knew Volozh personally given his ties to Israel, but that he had never met him again after the sanctions. Reports which, however, were not enough for Carrai to avoid the cold shower at Palazzo Chigi, concluded il Fatto .
So at the moment the operation envisaged by Carrai to sell its Intelligent Technology to Nevius BV is blocked.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/innovazione/perche-meloni-ha-stoppato-un-affare-del-renziano-carrai/ on Fri, 24 Mar 2023 13:05:00 +0000.