The former top manager of the famous large investment companies gained fame thanks to several high-profile deals. Now Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov is already working for himself, having organized the investment company Marathon Group. Among his recent deals are several sensational investments, for example, the purchase of a stake in the Magnit retail chain. In addition, the businessman is known for being married to the daughter of Minister Sergey Lavrov.
early years
The year of birth of Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov - 1982 (October 12). He was born in Moscow. His father, Semyon Leonidovich, is engaged in the pharmaceutical business and is one of the owners of the Genfa pharmaceutical distributor. Previously, he was the general director of the state enterprise Capital Stores, which owned 274 outlets. Collaborated with the state corporation "Rostec". By nationality Vinokurov Alexander Semenovich Russian.
After graduating from high school, Vinokurov entered the economics department of the prestigious Cambridge University. During his studies, he became the founder of the student union "Russian Cambridge Society" and was elected its first president. In 2004 he graduated with a master's degree in economics. In the same year, a working biography of Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov began in the London division of Morgan Stanley Investment Bank. The young specialist began working as a senior specialist in the investment banking department. The place was recommended to him by Ruben Vardanyan, the head and founder of the Troika Dialog investment company, in which he had an internship.
Return to Russia
In 2006, Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov returned to Russia. In Moscow, he co-founded the Russian representative office of the American private equity investment fund TPG Capital. One of the largest in the world, with assets of 100 billion US dollars. He became the youngest vice president in the history of the company. He was responsible for developing a strategy for the development of projects and investment units in the CIS and Eastern Europe.
With his direct participation, several major transactions were completed:
- Purchase of a VTB stake in the privatization of a state stake.
- The acquisition of Moscow real estate in the business centers "White Gardens" and "White Square".
- Investments in the Russian production of hygiene products by the Belgian company Ontex SA and coffee producer Strauss Coffee.
- The acquisition of the Lenta hypermarket chain (St. Petersburg), which was combined with the power seizure of the company’s office, received great resonance. And it has become one of TPG Capital’s most profitable deals, bringing in more than 5x return on investment.
What's in the "Sum"?
In 2011, Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov was appointed to the post of president of the Summa group, owned by Ziyavudin Magomedov. The company operates in forty Russian regions and abroad. He does business in port logistics, construction, agriculture, telecommunications and the oil and gas industry. The Group owns blocks of shares in large private and state-owned companies, including the Novorossiysk Commercial Sea Port and the United Grain Company. Vinokurov took up the development of the group’s traditional business and the organization of new directions.
In cooperation with other investors, the GHP Group (owned by Mark Garber) and the TPG Group acquired 71% of the shares of the transport company Fesco from Industrial Investors. A package of shares (50%) of the United Grain Company was purchased from the state.
At Alfa Group
For three years (from 2014 to 2017), he served as president of one of the country's leading investment companies, A1, a member of the Alfa Group financial and industrial consortium. The company is engaged in all types of investment projects, including crisis management and debt restructuring.
Major transactions conducted by Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov, were:
- Sale of the “Formula Kino” network (the second by the number of cinemas). The buyer was the structure of billionaire Alexander Mamut, the amount of the transaction, according to some estimates, ranged from 9 to 12 billion rubles.
- Purchase of a block of shares in Polyplastic, one of the largest producers of polymer pipes.
- Attracting a strategic investor for the largest specialized online store Exist.ru, which sells spare parts for cars.
Organization of own company
In May 2017, Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov announced his resignation from the post of president of A1 and the creation of his investment group Marathon Group. As he himself said, his goal is to create an investment company that meets the best international standards. The company intended to finance projects at the expense of shareholders.
The second founder of the company was Sergey Zakharov, who also quit A1, where he served as executive director. Previously, they worked together in the Summa group. The distribution of shares was not reported, but, according to experts, Vinokurov has a controlling stake. In the new company, Zakharov received the post of chairman of the board and became responsible for the operational management of the group. Alexander Semenovich became the president of the company, his responsibilities include strategic planning and personnel management.
What kind of money do we live on?
The Marathon Group operates primarily in four areas: pharmaceuticals, FMCG (fast-moving goods markets) and retail, transport infrastructure and agriculture. Another key area is the restructuring of distressed assets.
When organizing a new investment group, many experts wondered what money the founders were going to work for. Forbes said that upon joining the Summa group, Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov was supposed to receive a lift in the amount of $ 2 million and the same annual salary. At Alfa Group, his reward was approximately $ 4-6 million per year, excluding bonuses and bonuses. So money should have been enough to organize a business.
Buying a stake in Magnit
Vinokurov Alexander Semenovich at the end of May 2018 announced the purchase of a stake in the retailer at the expense of his own and borrowed funds. As it turned out, the main creditor was the seller himself - VTB. A few months earlier, the bank bought back 29% of the trading company from its founder, Sergey Galitsky. VTB Group sold 11.82% in Magnit. The buyer was the Marathon Group, founded by Alexander Vinokurov and his partner Sergey Zakharov. The parties to the transaction did not disclose the amount of the sale, but it is noted that the market value was approximately $ 1.02 billion. As a result of transactions, the state bank's share in the authorized capital of a retail company decreased to 17.28%.
The banking group said it is still considering investing in a retailer as a long-term investment. And plans to bring the company to a new level of development. Vinkokurov, in turn, said that he considered Magnit a highly undervalued asset and hoped that the efforts of management and shareholders would return the fair price and first place among Russian retail chains.
What is there now?
For a little more than a year and a half of independent work, Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov achieved impressive success in business. The pharmaceutical assets were concentrated in the Marathon Pharma subholding:
- Distribution "SIA Group", in which it is planned to invest 6 billion rubles until 2020. to open 3,300 points of sale.
- The company "Synthesis" is one of the largest manufacturers of drugs.
- Biocom Management Company, which owns the Mega Pharm pharmacy chain;
- The company "Fort", producing immunobiological vaccines, and the largest manufacturer of sanitizers (household antiseptics) "Bentus Laboratory".
personal information
The first photos of Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov with his wife, Ekaterina Sergeyevna Vinokurova, aroused great interest among the public. After all, the legal wife of a businessman is the only daughter of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Sergey Lavrov. Catherine lived for 17 years in the United States, where her father worked in the country's mission to the UN. After graduating from Columbia University, she decided to go to London for a year to study, where she met her future husband.
In 2008, they got married, now the couple has two daughters. Parents of Alexander Semenovich Vinokurov were very happy about the appearance of granddaughters. The young mother worked in the Russian representative office of the auction company Christie's. Now he is engaged in the promotion of Russian art in his company Smart Art. Vinokurov, in an interview with Forbes magazine, said he was proud of his relationship with S. Lavrov and was trying to take an example from his famous father-in-law. Together with his wife they went in for triathlon, now they like to take extreme walks in nature or ride in the mountains.