In 1999, the group of companies Smart started its active work in the mining and steel sectors.
In the early 2000’s Smart obtained rights to manage state-owned stock of shares of Ingulets Mining and Processing Integrated Plant, in order to increase its management effectiveness and to decrease production costs. As a result of years of work at the Ingulets plant, production figures grew significantly, innovations were adopted, and international compliance certificates for protection of environment (ISO 14001:2004) and labour (ÎÍSÀS 18001:1999) were obtained.
In 2004 the Ingulets plant started the supply of raw materials to Makeevka Metal Works, in order to build up an effective strategic partnership in the steel and mining sector. Consequently, steel casting was revived at the Makeevka plant, besides a modernisation programme was implemented, and the levels of wages and the state budget payments increased.
In the course of time, Smart group of companies started investing into such industries as shipbuilding, non-metallic mining and agriculture.
In 2006, in order to consolidate assets of the group, the process of establishing the company ‘Smart Holding’ commenced. In 2007 the company Smart Holding N.V. (Netherlands) was established with the objective of providing for operations abroad, including capital markets.
In 2007 ‘SCM’ and Smart Holding negotiated on merging their steel and mining assets on the basis of holding company Metinvest B.V., in order to increase business competitiveness. In 2008-2009 this company obtained permission of the Ukrainian and EU antitrust regulators for concentration of shareholdings in the Ingulets Mining and Processing Integrated Plant, Makeevka Metal Works, and the Bulgarian enterprise Promet Steel. Currently, ‘Smart Holding’ is the owner of blocking stock (25% plus one share) in Metinvest company, previously fully controlled by ‘SCM’.
Today the investment activity of Smart Holding embraces various, quite diverse industries: metallurgy, shipbuilding and machine building, non-metal mining, agriculture and food processing, construction, banking and insurance. Smart Holding participates in such businesses as a strategic investor, as well as a majority or minority shareholder.
Smart Holding carries out investment activities in the majority of Ukrainian regions; the number of the employees for the enterprises in the sphere of interests of the holding makes up about 100 thousand people. Throughout 2005-2008, capital investments exceeded UAH 7 billion.
The president and the main beneficiary of Smart Holding is Vadim Novinskiy.
