Sayenko Kharenko has acted as legal counsel to Henkell & Co. Sektkellerei GmbH concerning the squeeze-out of minority shareholders from PrJSC Kyivsky Zavod Shampanskikh Vyn “Stolychniy.”
Sayenko Kharenko describes Henkell as "a renowned market leader in numerous countries for wine, sparkling wine, Prosecco, and many other spirits products. In Germany, Henkell leads the premium sparkling wine market. Torley Sektkellerei Kft. in Hungary, Bohemia Sekt s.r.o. in the Czech Republic, and Hubert J.E. s.r.o. in Slovakia are three strong, market-leading Eastern European sparkling wine producers that likewise belong to the Henkell Group."
In 2007, according to Sayenko Kharenko, Henkell entered the Ukrainian market by acquiring a controlling stake in PrJSC Kyivsky Zavod Shampanskikh Vyn “Stolychniy" (the "Wine Factory") that, the firm reports, "among other trademarks, produces one of the most well-known sparkling wines under the brand name 'Sovetskoe Shampanskoe' (recently renamed 'Sovetovskoe Shampanskoe'). Currently, the Wine Factory is a top-four Ukrainian producer of sparkling wine in Ukraine with an approximately 10% market share and a long tradition in the sparkling wine market."
"The introduction of squeeze-out procedure into the national legal framework in 2017 offered the dominant controlling shareholders of Ukrainian joint stock companies an opportunity to concentrate 100% of all issued shares, subject to market compensation payable to minority shareholders," the firm reports. "Henkell exercised its legitimate right as a dominant controlling shareholder by launching a squeeze-out procedure at the Wine Factory." The project, guided by Sayenko Kharenko, "included preparing a detailed legal step plan for acquisition of shares from minority shareholders with subsequent preparation of the public irrevocable demand for submission to the Wine Factory, the National Securities and Stock Market Commission, and the National Depositary of Ukraine, as well as drafting and submitting all the necessary supporting documents.
Sayenko Kharenko`s project team was led by Counsel Sergiy Kazmirchuk, supported by Associates Mykola Lykhoglyad and Ilhar Hakhramanov, all working under the general supervision of Partner Vladimir Sayenko.
