Israeli company B.S.D. Crown LTD has placed a request to reacquire financial resources placed in deposit in the International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA) during the tenure of Jahangir Hajiyev, who served as the Board Chairman of the bank from 2001 up until March 2015, reported
haqqin.az
The company claims it had assets deposited in the bank that totaled $13.6 million.
In response to the company’s request, the bank offered to return the deposit with interest over a 12 month period by May of 2017. B.S.D. Crown declined the offer, citing the fact that the majority of the share of IBA belong to the state.
The company stated it was ready to “use all possible means” to see that its assets are returned.
Background
The sum became a point of contention when major shareholder, Eldad Levy, inquired as to why the company had placed its assets in banks in Azerbaijan and Austria.
B.S.D. Crown is a subsidiary of Israeli investment company BGI. Until recently, the controlling stake of B.G.I was in the hands of Ukrainian oligarch, Alexander Granvosky.
Granovsky later sold out when he was unable to make a profit with one of B.S.D. Crown’s daughter companies, Willi Food.
Shareholder Eldad Levy argued that the company had placed $11 million in Azerbaijan and more than $30 million in Austria in order to not have to pay dividends to its shareholders.
The new owner of the company, Grigori Gurotovoy responded that the illegal use of funds had already begun at the time when BGI was managed by Odessa businessman, Granovsky.
However, it is widely speculated in the Israeli business world that Gurtovoy is a business partner of Granovsky. Israeli Securities Management has accused Gurtovoy and two other senior BGI employees of massive fraud and the concealment of funds in Azerbaijani and Austrian banks.
