Their father agreed to trigger a transfer of his two Liechtenstein-registered foundations, which effectively control his business empire, to them. Several days later, he changed his mind.
The children also wrote a letter to the managers of family-owned businesses warning them against taking part in any potential takeover attempts. They said they were having difficulty contacting their father and were in conflict with Kulka.
Then, in May, after Solorz tried to remove his sons from his companies, a Liechtenstein court dismissed a lawsuit by him attempting to block the succession of the foundation to the children. His lawyer, Radoslaw Kwasnicki, said the billionaire is appealing the ruling.
Now, Solorz is out, the latest development in a saga that’s gripped the Polish public. As the drama has ensued, Cyfrowy shares have lagged the broader Polish market. They’ve gained less than half as much as the benchmark WIG20 index, which is up 34 per cent this year.
The stock fell 2.8 per cent on Tuesday.
Investors look at the conflict “mainly from the perspective of operational risks” for a company that has started to improve results in the past quarters, according to Piotr Raciborski, an analyst at Wood & Co. in Warsaw.
Jaroslaw Kolkowski, a lawyer representing TiVi, told Bloomberg News that the dismissals this week were made “to limit the risk of transferring assets out of the family foundation.”
A scene from Succession, with Shiv Roy played by Australian Sarah Snook.
Credit: Colin Hutton
Separately, TiVi said in a statement published by Cyfrowy Polsat that it “recognises and appreciates the indisputable contributions” of Solorz and former CEO Miroslaw Blaszczyk, and that it decided to dismiss them to boost supervision over key assets.
“The Foundation’s cornerstone obligation is to protect its assets, and the above changes were indispensable to properly discharge said obligation,” TiVi said. It added it will “monitor the situation and take additional decisions when necessary.”
Solorz’s lawyer Radoslaw Kwiasnicki told PAP news agency that the businessman will appeal the “unlawful” dismissal, calling it “merely a temporary situation.”
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The billionaire rarely appears in public, but last year took part in a shareholder meeting via a videolink from an undisclosed location. His performance there increased concerns over his health, but his aides have repeatedly rejected such speculation.
Kwasnicki told daily Puls Biznesu last month that Solorz was in “great shape” and normally works long hours, including on new business ventures.
For those watching the story unfold, the general view is there is more to go before any resolution.
“If personnel changes ultimately lead to some clearer succession scenario, this will be received positively,” Wood & Co.’s Raciborski said. “Still, investors will await the next legal steps from both sides to assess the situation more clearly.”
Bloomberg
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