RUSSIA: Neşet Koçkar Buys Intourist From Thomas Cook Group

Turkish investor has acquired Intourist, one of Russia's largest tour operators, from collapsed travel group Thomas Cook Group, the Russian company said Friday.

Neşet Koçkar, the second-largest shareholder in the Thomas Cook Group, announced Friday the signing of an agreement to acquire Intourist from the Thomas Cook Group, Intourist said in a statement, not revealing how much the deal was worth.

Koçkar, who also owns Turkish tour operator Anex, was quoted as saying: Once we have recapitalized and restructured Intourist, we intend to share Intourist with the Russian people through an IPO to celebrate its glorious comeback.

Intourist is Russia's oldest tour operator, created by the Soviet authorities in 1929 to organize highly controlled visits to the USSR for foreign visitors.

It was privatized in the early 1990s. Late last year Thomas Cook bought Intourist from billionaire Vladimir Yevtushenkov's Sistema holding firm.

Thomas Cook collapsed in September this year, triggering Britain's biggest peacetime repatriation of stranded holidaymakers.

Friday's deal will see Koçkar acquire Thomas Cook's inbound, outbound and domestic tour operator businesses, as well as retail stores, technology and other assets, Intourist said.

Completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals, Intourist added.

Intourist is a very solid brand in the history of both Russian and international tourism and we simply cannot let it vanish, Koçkar said.

Intourist is a very valuable asset, said Viktor Topolkarayev, the company's director.

The company sustained its regular commercial activities despite the difficulties of Thomas Cook in the U.K., he added

Intourist is a Russian tour operator, headquartered in Moscow.

Intourist was the official state travel agency of the Soviet Union, founded in 1929.

Intourist was responsible for managing the great majority of foreigners' access to, and travel within, the Soviet Union.

In 1933 Aron Sheinman started work for Intourist in London and filled the post of Director from 1937 to 1939. When he was dismissed he refused to return to Moscow, and gained British citizenship later that year.

The enterprise was privatised in 1992.

In 2011 VAO Intourist established a joint venture with Thomas Cook Group plc with shares owned by the Thomas Cook Group of 50.1%. The incoming business within the joint venture was fully transferred to the Intourist LLC which intends to continue to expand the tour operating services and host tourists.