Russian online retailer Ozon Holdings said on Monday it was opening an office in Shenzhen in China to boost cross-border sales to Russian shoppers on its platform. Russian companies have been rapidly boosting business ties with China as firms grapple with unprecedented Western sanctions. It follows a similar move into Turkey earlier this year by the e-commerce outfit, and comes at time when the Russian economy is trying to pivot away from Western markets and forge new supply chains with the likes of China, Turkey and Iran.
NEW YORK, June 01, 2022--Ozon Holdings PLC (NASDAQ and MOEX: "OZON", thereafter referred to as "we", "us", "our", "Ozon" or the "Company"), the operator of a leading Russian e-commerce platform, provides further update in respect of its $750 million 1.875 per cent. senior unsecured convertible bonds due 2026 ("Bonds"), issued by the group’s Cypriot holding company, Ozon Holdings PLC.
Nasdaq-listed Ozon, trading in whose shares has been suspended since Feb. 28, said it is restricted from sending cash from its Russian subsidiaries to its Cypriot holding company, Ozon Holdings Plc, which is the issuer of the bonds. Ozon had warned of bond payment issues in early March and has since entered into discussions with an ad hoc group of holders of its $750 million, 1.875% unsecured convertible bonds. Ozon, which has not been targeted by Western sanctions, has said Russian capital controls and the ever-changing regulatory backdrop were restricting it from diverting funds from its Russian subsidiaries, creating the risk that it would have insufficient liquidity at the required time.