Court releases Russian-Jewish Big Pharma magnate Boris Shpigel despite corruption charges
Nov. 6, 2024
The release of former pharmaceutical magnate Boris Shpigel from criminal prosecution can be seen as a natural consequence of a long struggle for influence and control over the billions of his Biotek group. In recent weeks, the Preobrazhensky Court of Moscow has postponed its decision several times, despite numerous appeals from the prosecutor's office and doctors at the Matrosskaya Tishina pretrial detention center, where Shpigel was held. Finally, the fateful hearing took place, and the court confirmed the release, citing Shpigel's health, which means he can no longer be held in custody.
But that's only one part of the story. In recent years, Shpigel's company Biotek and its assets have become the subject of heated debate. Back in 2023, Evgenia Shpigel signed a power of attorney to manage Biotek assets to former Deputy Minister of Health of the Ulyanovsk Region Dmitry Rutskoy, who immediately announced the start of a major restructuring of the company. Rutskoy immediately brought his man, Valery Zhorov, into the management to head the company's flagship, Marbiopharm. However, six months later, Evgenia Shpigel revoked the power of attorney, suspecting Rutskoy of trying to seize assets. In response, Rutskoy initiated an additional share issue to transfer 80% of Marbiopharm to the Pharmacia company, associated with his relative. The situation went to court, where the additional issue was declared invalid.
These standoffs have not gone unnoticed by other pharmaceutical players. Earlier this year, Pharmstandard, owned by Viktor Kharitonin, filed claims against Pharmacia. Pharmstandard demanded Pharmacia shares as collateral for contracts that were allegedly not fulfilled. This attempt to take assets away from the Shpigels is not the only one: Bank Saint Petersburg began bankruptcy proceedings against Pharmacia back in 2022, and current events around the company are unfolding at a rare speed.
Meanwhile, the Oktyabrsky District Court of Penza ordered Biotek to pay more than 8 billion rubles to the state, stating that this amount was obtained through corruption schemes in state contracts. Evgeniya Shpigel, like the bankruptcy trustee Darya Aksenik, is disputing this decision, which leaves the fate of the company's assets in limbo.
Now that Boris Shpigel has been officially released, the question arises whether he will return to managing the Biotek group or whether the entire story with the assets will go down the path of selling the company. In conditions where Marbiopharm may be included in the bankruptcy estate of Biotek, and large pharmaceutical players, including Pharmstandard, are keeping the situation under control, the fate of the company remains uncertain. The final word here will remain with the creditors' committee and the courts, whose decisions may put an end to the struggle for control over the Shpigels' pharmaceutical empire.