The unification of efforts of three TMSs, represented by ATH, Talaria and BTM (Business Travel Management), announced in 2017, apparently did not justify itself in part: the other day, ATH CEO Andrey Voronin announced the imminent exit of Talaria from the group of companies, and in an interview with one of the specialized publications confirmed the fact of legal proceedings with the second partner - BTM. According to experts, in the current situation, ATN may well lose a significant share of the market volumes, returning to the "original" indicators. Moreover, as observers emphasize, what is happening may negatively affect the relations between ATN and American Express Global Business Travel.
Let us recall that in the summer of 2017, it became known that Talarii had joined the ATH American Express GBT group of companies. Later, on November 1, 2017, the latter acquired 49%'s share in BTM (Business Travel Management). "Our group thus now has three companies: ATH, TALARII and BTM. This makes us one of the largest players in the Russian business travel market," Mr. Voronin said at the time.
However, as practice has shown, the companies were unable to get along. As Mr. Voronin explained to the TRN portal, the deal on Talaria's exit should take place at the end of May. Talaria itself was unable to provide an immediate comment.
In turn, BTM CEO Pavel Vasin, commenting on the current situation, emphasized that he sees no point in "exchanging claims through the specialized press." "Moreover, I believe that no one should publicly admit their own incompetence, and on many issues at once. Yes, it is obvious that in two years of integration neither with BTM nor with Talaria has happened. I hope that colleagues from Talaria will be able to avoid numerous lawsuits," he said.
According to experts, given the numerous lawsuits between VTM and ATH, as well as between ATH management and the company's employees, it can be assumed that with the departure of Talaria, Voronin's structure may lose its position on the Russian market.
"Probably, the internal merger between these companies was not the most optimal and, most likely, one company took advantage of the financial capabilities of the other, strengthened its stable position and decided to exit. ATH is still the same, only now their business volume will be a little different. Plus, there is BTM, which has some kind of corporate conflict within this group, so the situation can develop differently. I think that ATH against this background can return to the same potential that it had before the merger with these two companies," says Denis Matyukhin, CEO and founder of Aeroclub Group of Companies.
At the same time, as observers emphasize, if in the case of Talaria’s exit everything is going quite smoothly, then the lawsuits between ATH and BTM give reason to think about Mr. Voronin’s prospects.
"Of course, we can say that someone's hopes in the BTM-ATH-Certares deal were not justified. Obviously, the initiator of the divorce is BTM, so it is better to clarify the facts with the party to the conflict. In my opinion, the reasons for both the quick merger and the fleeting romance are the same: money and ambitions. Probably one of the parties or all participants did not receive the desired economic effect. Secondly, there is always the question of power. Rarely can independent charismatic leaders continue to work in harmony and equality. As a rule, one must leave," explained Anna Kuznetsova, a leading expert in the field of business travel.
"In general, the imminent "death" of ATH has been talked about for a long time, their inevitable demise has been predicted for the last 10 years. There are regular rumors about their unstable financial situation, management problems and debts. But Voronin is surprisingly resilient, even talented in preserving the business. The inaction or, on the contrary, support of AmEx GBT is also surprising. After all, this is a franchise, and by and large, regardless of the terms specified in the agreement, nothing prevents AmEx GBT from changing its partner - the operator in Russia in such a situation. Since the entry, ATH has given them enough unpleasant reasons to worry about both customer service and business reputation. There are several people in Russia who want to get the AmEx GBT franchise. I believe that the only real threat to ATH is the loss of the franchise, ATH without AmEx is not a "tenant", - Ms. Kuznetsova believes.
And here it is worth noting that this is not the first time that ATN has failed to find a common language with its partners. Thus, in February 2015, Mr. Voronin's company began negotiations on the launch of a strategic partnership with Vipservice. As this time, the plans were serious - the creation of the largest business travel agency in Russia. However, a year later, the parties announced that the deal would not take place, since the shareholders of the companies did not agree on its terms. At the same time, the companies were also unable to part ways peacefully - the relationship was broken through the court. The reason for this was ATN's debt to its partners.
Let us add that at the moment, according to data from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, the shares in BTM are distributed as follows: 49% - ATN, 46% - Voronin A.V., 5% - Vasin P.V., and other individuals.
Shares in Talaria: 49% - Etisa Limited (Cyprus), 2% - Voronin A.V., 49% - Kuzyuberdin R.N., while all 100% shares are pledged to Alfa-Bank.
Source: trn-news.ru
