MPs today blasted the UK for failing to seize a single house, yacht or serious asset from Putin’s oligarchs as it emerged that Russian billionaires in Britain have been shoveling vast amounts of cash out of the country into Bitcoin after the Government still refused to sanction them.
Roman Abramovich has put Chelsea up for sale for £3billion having already lined up a bid led by a Swiss billionaire and is also said to be getting rid of £200m of London property because he is allegedly ‘terrified of being sanctioned’.
Labour MP Chris Bryant, who has been particularly critical of the decision not to sanction Mr Abramovich claiming Boris Johnson is ‘frightened’ to do it to him and others, said today: ‘I don’t understand why we haven’t seized a single Putin oligarch yacht, palace or serious asset yet. Unlike our European neighbours’.
He added: ‘Auction houses, including Christie’s and Sotheby’s, are likely see some very valuable assets being traded by Putin supporters. They should refuse to handle them’.
Yesterday EU-sanctioned Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov, the former owner of Arsenal who lives in a £50m Surrey mansion, had his $600million megayacht Dilbar, described as his most prized possession, seized by the Germans in Hamburg yesterday.
And today French authorities have seized a yacht they linked to Rosneft boss Igor Sechin – a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin – in the Mediterranean port of La Ciotat close to Marseille.
Sechin is Vladimir Putin’s de facto deputy – nicknamed Darth Vader due to his fearsome power in Russia. He is already subject to a travel ban and asset freeze by the US.
But no British-based oligarchs, despite having assets such as houses worth billions of pounds, have lost any assets at all because of the UK Government, and have used the past week to transfer their pots of cash out of the country, often into the cryptocurrency markets, experts have said.
Security Minister Damian Hinds today insisted the UK has a ‘comprehensive’ programme of sanctions and economic punishments, adding: ‘It’s not a competition, it’s something we do together to make sure we have maximum impact. We’ve always been clear it’s a ratchet approach. There will also be more [individuals]. We are not going to tell people in advance’.
Sanctions lawyer Nigel Kushner, chief executive of W Legal in London, is currently advising several wealthy Russians fearing they will have their UK assets frozen – and accused the Government of leaving the door open for rich clients to move their cash.
He said: ‘Some will say [Government policy] defeats the whole object of sanctions because they have spent the last week moving their money out of this jurisdiction. I will explain to them that the moment they are sanctioned their bank accounts will be frozen. They will say to me, can I move my money out before I’m on the list, and I will say that’s perfectly legitimate.
‘Some will say that the government has softened the blow by allowing them the time to move their money out’.
He added: ‘The immediate problem is where they are going to move their cash to. There aren’t many safe havens. They won’t want to move their funds to Russia. That’s the last place you’d want to go.
‘Some might purchase Bitcoin – we’ve seen that and other cryptocurrencies go up in value over the last few days. It’s tricky for them. It’s the only option for many of them, because no bank in the world will touch them once you are on the sanction list. You’re persona non grata. Where do you put your money?’.
Mr Kushner also suggested that the Foreign Office had also been slow to act after threats from oligarchs’ lawyers.
He said: ‘Liz Truss has suggested that aggressive lawyers have written to the Foreign Office threatening to bring claims if their Oligarch clients are sanctioned and it’s taking more time to put the jigsaw pieces together to properly sanction them.
‘I haven’t written any of those letters myself – I prefer a more consensual approach to seek to explain why the links aren’t there because threatening the Government is going to be counter-productive. I imagine those who have written will say it is buying their client time to move assets out and perhaps dispose of shares in companies. But while you can press a button and move your millions or billions out of a bank account, what you can’t easily to is transfer a title of a house in Belgravia or shares in a football club overnight’.
As Britain was accused of being too slow to hammer Russian billionaires, it also emerged today:
At least two more oligarchs could be added to the UK sanctions list today as Michael Gove said they could have their UK properties seized by the government and even handed to Ukrainians to live in;
Britain is still on course to bolster the Kremlin’s coffers with £2billion-a-year for imported Russian liquefied natural gas as Brent crude oil today topped $119 per barrel, is now up almost 20% on the week and is expected to rise even higher because of the war in Ukraine;
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich (pictured with third wife Dasha Zhukova), whose money turned the club into a football powerhouse, is said to be selling off his homes having already put the club up for sale
The Russian billionaire, 54, reportedly boasts a British property empire that includes a 15-bedroom mansion in Kensington Palace Gardens (pictured) that is believed to be now worth £125 million
Abramovich’s property empire also includes a £22million three-storey penthouse at the Chelsea Waterfront (pictured) which was completed after his visa expired and was made in his name
Sanctioned Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov’s megayacht Dilbar has been seized by German authorities in Hamburg. He owns a £50m Surrey mansion but has faced no sanctions in the UK
Abramovich is worth 10.4bn ($12.5bn), according to Forbes, and owns a £150m Kensington mansion, a £22m penthouse, and more than £1.2bn of yachts, private jets, helicopters and supercars based in Britain and around the world
Sir Keir Starmer used Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday to suggest more action is needed from the UK to ‘stand up to Putin and those who prop up his regime’.
The Labour leader told MPs: ‘Roman Abramovich is the owner of Chelsea Football Club and various other high-value assets in the United Kingdom. He’s a person of interest to the Home Office because of his links to the Russian state and his public association with corrupt activity and practices.
‘Last week, the Prime Minister said that Abramovich is facing sanctions. He later corrected the record to say that he isn’t. Well, why on earth isn’t he?’
Sir Keir added: ‘Last week, Putin summoned to the Kremlin the cronies who prop up his regime, they dip their hands in the blood of Putin’s war.
‘Among them was Igor Shuvalov, Putin’s former deputy prime minister. Shuvalov owns two flats, not five minutes walk from this House. They’re worth over £11million. He is on the EU sanctions list, but he’s not on the UK sanctions list. When will the Prime Minister sort this out?’
Boris Johnson would not comment on individual cases but insisted measures being brought forward to expose the ownership of properties will ‘continue to tighten the noose around Putin’s regime’.
He added that a ‘full list of all those associated’ with the Russian president’s regime will be published, and later told MPs: ‘I do hope that those who have any links with the Putin regime whatever, any so-called oligarchs… take this opportunity, as some brave individuals already have, to disassociate themselves from this barbaric invasion.’
Chris Bryant, who sits on the Commons foreign affairs committee, claimed earlier this week that Mr Abramovich was selling his palatial London home to avoid having his assets frozen under British sanctions. He said the Chelsea owner was ‘terrified of being sanctioned’ and ministers should act quickly. ‘He’s already going to sell his London home tomorrow and another flat as well,’ the Labour MP told the Commons on Tuesday.
Roman Abramovich last night sensationally confirmed that Chelsea is up for sale, with the Russian oligarch reportedly slapping a £3billion asking price on the London club while also writing off the £1.5billion debt he is owed from it.
In a surprise development, the billionaire broke his silence to confirm he is in the process of selling Chelsea FC – with proceeds of the prospective sale to be donated to the victims of war in Ukraine.
MailOnline reported on Wednesday morning that the club had been put on the market, with a view to recouping at least £3billion, as Abramovich seeks to distance himself from Russian President Vladimir Putin and sanctions imposed on Russia by the west over its devastating and illegal invasion of Ukraine.
In a statement, Abramovich confirmed: ‘I would like to address the speculation in media over the past few days in relation to my ownership of Chelsea FC.
‘As I have stated before, I have always taken decisions with the Club’s best interest at heart. In the current situation, I have therefore taken the decision to sell the Club, as I believe this is in the best interest of the Club, the fans, the employees, as well as the Club’s sponsors and partners.’
Abramovich said he will not be asking to be repaid £1.5billion in loans he has granted the club during 19 years of injecting cash to elevate the team into one of the most successful in Europe. ‘The sale of the Club will not be fast-tracked but will follow due process. I will not be asking for any loans to be repaid,’ he said.
‘This has never been about business nor money for me, but about pure passion for the game and Club. Moreover, I have instructed my team to set up a charitable foundation where all net proceeds from the sale will be donated.
‘The foundation will be for the benefit of all victims of the war in Ukraine. This includes providing critical funds towards the urgent and immediate needs of victims, as well as supporting the long-term work of recovery.’
The speed of Abramovich’s pending exit from Chelsea is striking as he was trying to instigate a plan this past weekend to relinquish some control in order to keep the club under his ownership.
But as Russia’s war on Ukraine entered a seventh day, pressure was growing on the British government to include him among the wealthy Russians to be targeted in sanctions.
Usmanov, 68, (pictured right with Putin at the Kremlin in 2018) after he was sanctioned by the EU in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Labour have asked for Igor Shuvalov to be sanctioned
The 5,380 sq ft penthouse at Whitehall Court (pictured), officially owned by a company belonging to Shuvalov, emerged in an investigation by Alexei Navalny, a leading opponent of President Vladimir Putin
Usmanov lives in London, where his Russian telecoms giant MegaFon is listed. His main home is Beechwood House, in north London
Usmanov also owns Sutton Place, a grade I listed £50m Tudor mansion and estate near Woking in Surrey, which was once famously owned by Jean Paul Getty
Putin-linked oligarchs could see UK properties seized PERMANENTLY and used to house Ukrainian refugees, says Michael Gove
It could apply to nine oligarchs sanctioned by the UK, including Kirill Shamalov (left), Vladimir Putin’s former son-in-law
Putin-linked oligarchs could have their UK properties seized by the government, under radical plans being drawn up by Michael Gove.
The Cabinet minister is proposing to ramp up the sanctions regime by requisitioning lavish residences without paying any compensation.
They could potentially be used to house Ukrainian refugees, with Boris Johnson pledging that Britain will take hundreds of thousands fleeing the Russian invasion.
There is understood to have been ‘enthusiastic’ support at Cabinet for the idea – including from the PM – and it could apply to nine oligarchs sanctioned by the UK, including Kirill Shamalov, Vladimir Putin’s former son-in-law.
Currently the state can freeze assets of people subject to sanctions, but cannot take possession of them without compensation.
However, the plan – reported by the Financial Times – is likely to require legislation, and government lawyers have raised concerns it would face legal challenges for undermining core property rights.
No final decision has been reached on whether to proceed, with one official telling MailOnline that it will need to happen in ‘days or weeks’ to be relevant.
The possibility of housing Ukrainian refugees in any properties has also been discussed, as they would be ‘the government’s to use’.
But sources said it might end up being more practical to sell and use the proceeds for other housing.
Earlier, it was reported that the billionaire had already begun a ‘fire sale’ of his sprawling London portfolio as he tries to offload Chelsea for £3billion and £200million worth of properties – with an MP claiming the Russian billionaire is acting quickly to stop his assets being frozen.
Abramovich is worth £10.4bn ($12.5bn), according to Forbes, and owns a £150m Kensington mansion, a £22m penthouse, and more than £1.2bn of yachts, private jets, helicopters and supercars in Britain and globally.
Chelsea FC is his most valuable British asset, after the oligarch transformed its fortunes from outside challengers to Premier League giants with the help of Jose Mourinho and huge signings like Didier Drogba, so its sale will be a personal blow to the billionaire industrialist.
World’s richest crypto billionaire says he ignored Ukraine’s direct plea to ban all Russians from his Binance platform to avoid ‘beating up’ ordinary Russian citizens
The world’s richest cryptocurrency billionaire (pictured, CEO Changpeng Zhao) has said he ignored Ukraine’s direct plea to ban all Russians from his platform to avoid ‘beating up’ ordinary citizens
It came as the boss of one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges has refused to withdraw from Russia, claiming that his platform was ‘here to help the people’.
Changpeng Zhao, the founder and chief executive of Binance, claimed his business was ‘not political’ as he dismissed pleas from Ukraine’s vice prime minister Mykhailo Fedorov to block Russian users.
Fedorov has called on crypto exchanges, which allow internet users to hold and transact with cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, to block Russian customers.
He said this would complement sanctions brought in by swathes of Western countries against Russian banks, businesses and individuals, designed to isolate Russia’s economy and shorten the war.
But Zhao told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘We are not in a position to sanction populations of people. We are not political. We are against war but we are here to help the people.’ He claimed that Binance was complying with sanctions, and freezing the accounts of anyone on a blacklist, but that he didn’t know how many accounts had been suspended.
When asked why he would not take further steps, he added: ‘We are not against any people. We differentiate between the Russian politicians who start wars and the normal people. Many Russian people do not agree with war.’ His refusal to take steps to exclude Russia from Binance comes amid fears that Russian citizens – from oligarchs to normal people – are using cryptocurrencies as a store of wealth as the rouble tumbles.
Other businesses, from Apple to ExxonMobil, have cut ties with Russia in an effort to pile pressure on its tanking economy – in the hope that Putin’s barrage of Ukraine will be cut short.
Binance has already received a series of warnings from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
The watchdog said last year that Binance posed a ‘significant risk’ to consumers, and blasted its unwillingness to engage with regulators.
It ordered the firm to stop any regulated activities in the UK, but was not able to stop British users accessing the main website as this is not connected to the firm’s UK entity.
Sources claim Abramovich believes Chelsea is worth north of £3bn – but the likelihood of receiving such offers appears small. Indeed, it seems inevitable that the Russian businessman will have to lower his expectations.
There is a sense that securing an American buyer might be the club’s best route towards a sale as investment from China, the Far East and Eastern Europe has dried up for clear political reasons.
Nevertheless, there has been strong indications that Abramovich will receive at least two firm offers for the club by the end of the week. The danger of a potential buy-out being wrecked by Abramovich being sanctioned by the UK government has added urgency to the situation.
Labour Leader Sir Keir Starmer pressed the Prime Minister on why Abramovich has not been sanctioned, claiming he had ‘links to the Russian state’ and ‘public association with corrupt activity and practices’.
Mr Johnson said it is not ‘appropriate’ for him to comment on individual cases. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has previously said she has a ‘hit list’ of oligarchs they are targeting, but has not named all of them.
Kremlin-linked billionaires are also facing fresh threats of asset seizures from the US, with Joe Biden using his State of the Union address to say America was coming to ‘seize your yachts, your luxury apartments, your private jets’.
Abramovich has never held UK citizenship, and made his fortune selling assets purchased from the state when the USSR broke up. He vehemently denies being close to the Kremlin or doing anything that would merit sanctions.
Abramovich has seven children from two of his ex-wives. The eldest, Anna, 29, is a Columbia University philosophy graduate who lives in New York, while Arkadiy, 27, is an industrial tycoon with substantial oil and gas investments.
Sofia, 26, lives in London and the ‘wild child’ ‘of the family, recently posted a message on Instagram attacking Vladimir Putin for his invasion of Ukraine. Less is known about Arina, 20, and Ilya, 18, or Aaron, 11 and Leah Lou, 7, who were both born in New York to his third wife, Dasha.
Abramovich’s current location is unknown, but he has recently been in Belarus ‘trying to help’ negotiate an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine following its illegal invasion of the country.
The conflict entered its seventh day today, with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky warning Russia was seeking to erase Ukraine and its people after officials said 2,000 civilians had been killed.
As pressure grows to punish anyone seen having aided Putin’s regime, here is a round-up of Abramovich’s assets in Britain, as well as yachts, cars and planes that are strewn across the world.
Sanctioned Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov’s megayacht has been seized amid a crackdown on oligarchs friendly with Vladimir Putin.
The 512-foot Dilbar, described as Usmanov’s prized possession, was frozen by German authorities on Monday.
The vessel, with an estimated value of £600million, remains at shipyards in the northern city of Hamburg where it has been for a refitting job since late October.
The move is part of an asset freeze on Usmanov after he was sanctioned by the European Union in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Dilbar was custom-built for Usmanov by German shipbuilder Lürssen and took 52 months to finish.
She is one of the world’s largest yachts by volume and can hold over 100 passengers and crew in 58 cabins.
The yacht is part of Usmanov’s multibillion pound fortune, which spans stakes in iron ore and steel giant Metalloinvest and consumer electronics firm Xiaomi, as well as holdings in telecom, mining and media.
Usmanov, an oligarch with links to Vladimir Putin, was on Monday added to a list of sanctioned individuals by the European Union.
He hit back at the EU in a statement on the website of the International Fencing Federation, of which he is president, writing: ‘On 28 February 2022 I became the target of restrictive measures imposed by the European Union.
‘I believe that such a decision is unfair, and the reason is employed to justify the sanctions are a set of false and defamatory allegations damaging my honour, dignity, and business reputation.
‘I would use all legal means to protect my owner and reputation.’
Despite calls from MPs, Usmanov has not yet been given sanctions in the UK.
Usmanov has several interests in Britain, and until this week had a sponsorship deal with Everton FC, which has since been suspended.
As recently as 2018, the 68-year-old had a 30 per cent stake in Arsenal FC but sold out to American owner Stan Kroenke.
He also owns Beechwood House in the Highgate area of north London and Sutton Place in Surrey – collectively worth over £200million.
Russians own £1.5billion of UK property. These are the homes reportedly owned by some of the highest profile billionaires
The oligarchs facing calls to be sanctioned
Roman Abramovich: Worth up to £14.3bn
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, whose money turned the club into a football powerhouse
Russian money has long bankrolled some of English football’s biggest clubs, and Roman Abramovich is seen as the original billionaire football owner.
Mr Abramovich was named last year by detained Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny as someone who should be targeted by Western governments in a bid to curb human-rights abuses by the Russian state.
Mr Abramovich has never held UK citizenship and made his money selling assets purchased from the state when the Soviet Union broke up.
When he arrived at Chelsea in 2003 and transformed the team from outside challengers to a Premier League giant with the help of Jose Mourinho.
As well as owning the west London football club, he has reportedly built up a £200million property portfolio in London.
This includes a three-storey penthouse overlooking the River Thames for £22million and £90million for a 15-bedroom mansion next to Kensington Palace. This is now worth at least £125million.
The bulk of Abramovich’s UK wealth is to be found in Evraz, a steel and mining giant listed on the London stock market.
The Russian billionaire, 54, reportedly boasts a British property empire that includes a 15-bedroom mansion in Kensington Palace Gardens (pictured) that is believed to be now worth £125 million
The empire also includes a £22million three-storey penthouse at the Chelsea Waterfront (pictured) which was completed after his visa expired and was made in his name
Abramovich has a 162.5m yacht (pictured in September 2020), named ‘Eclipse’
Believed to be worth anything between £8.4billion and £14.3billion, according to Forbes and the Sunday Times, Abramovich also owns stakes in steel company Evraz and Norilsk Nickel – a Russian mining company.
A political figure in his homeland, he was governor of the Chukotka region and donated more than $2million to build schools, hospitals and infrastructure.
The Russian-Israeli businessman is known to have close relationships with former Russian leader Boris Yeltsin and at one time, current president Vladimir Putin.
MailOnline has asked the billionaire to comment on speculation he could face sanctions.
MPs yesterday demanded sanctions be widened so ministers can target him.
The comments came as Boris Johnson was asked to correct the record over claims he had made in the House of Commons that Mr Abramovich ‘is already facing sanctions’.
In his new statement, the Prime Minister reiterated the UK Government’s first wave of sanctions following Russia’s actions against Ukraine had seen ‘oligarchs at the heart of Putin’s inner circle and banks which have bankrolled the Russian occupation of Crimea’ among those targeted.
He added on Wednesday: ‘Roman Abramovich has not been the subject of targeted measures.
‘More generally anyone who comes to this country on an Israeli passport is a non-visa national. Israelis are required to obtain a visa if they want to live, work or study in the UK.’
Mr Abramovich had issues around his entrepreneurial visa in 2018. In October 2021, the businessman’s spokesperson confirmed he travelled to London as an Israeli citizen – therefore entering the United Kingdom without the need for a visa.
Alisher Usmanov: Worth £13.4billion
Alisher Usmanov (right), until recently a Arsenal shareholder, pictured with Vladimir Putin in 2013. He has links to Everton
Uzbek-born Russian Alisher Usmanov is ranked by Forbes Magazine as the third most-important oligarch in Russia, with an estimated net worth almost £14billion – up £2billion over the past two years.
He lives in London, where his Russian telecoms giant MegaFon is listed. His main home is Beechwood House, in north London.
He also owns Sutton Place, a grade I listed Tudor mansion near Woking in Surrey, which was once famously owned by Jean Paul Getty.
Both properties are worth a combined £100million or more.
He made a fortune by investing in metal and mining companies in the 1990s.
He headed Gazprom Investholding, a subsidiary of the world’s biggest extractor of natural gas Gazprom, from 2000 to 2014 and still owns a stake in iron ore and steel giant Metalloinvest. He also owns the Moscow newspaper Kommersant and a telecoms company.
For more than 10 years he owned 30 per cent of Arsenal – but recently sold out to American billionaire Stan Kroenke.
Usmanov lives in London, where his Russian telecoms giant MegaFon is listed. His main home is Beechwood House, in north London
Usmanov also owns Sutton Place, a grade I listed Tudor mansion near Woking in Surrey, which was once famously owned by Jean Paul Getty
His company, USM Holdings, has links to Everton where USM chairman Farhad Moshiri is owner. USM also has a naming rights deal at Everton’s training ground. He is not classified as a ‘related party’ despite his close links to the Liverpool club. Until yesterday, he was investing in Everton via his plethora of businesses rather than buying up shares.
Born in Uzbekistan when it was part of the Soviet Union, he hoped to become a diplomat, but was jailed in 1980 for corruption. He served six years but the Uzbek supreme court later quashed the conviction, saying the case had been politically motivated.
Now 68, he has defended Putin the past, and said: ‘The fact that everybody does not like him is not Putin’s problem.’
In 2015 he was reported as being a member of Russia 2018 World Cup local organising committee, which is at the heart of FIFA’s relationship with Russia.
His official biography records that in 2013 Usmanov was awarded the ‘Order for Service to the Fatherland for his services to the (Russian) state’ and also the ‘Order of Alexander Nevsky’ and the ‘Order of Honour of the Russian Federation, for his professional achievements and contribution to business’ as well as the ‘Medal for Contribution to International Cooperation by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.’
Oleg Deripaska: Worth £3.2billion
Oleg Deripaska (pictured), who was once Russia’s richest man, owns a house in Belgrave Square and is a grandson by marriage to the late leader Boris Yeltsin
Once Russia’s richest man, oil tycoon Mr Deripaska came to prominence in the UK when he entertained Labour grandee Lord Mandelson on his yacht in Corfu.
The tycoon – who is close to Mr Putin – quit as a director of Russian energy giant EN+ Group after being targeted by the sanctions. He owns a house in Belgrave Square and is a grandson by marriage to the late leader Boris Yeltsin.
Last year he tore into the FBI and ‘utter stupidity’ of the American government in a lengthy statement on Wednesday, a day after homes linked to him in New York and Washington were raided by the agency.
A spokesman for Deripaska said the searches stemmed from sanctions imposed on him in 2018 and that the homes belonged to his relatives. But on Deripaska indicated both pieces of luxury real estate were ‘abandoned.’
Deripaska is a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin who’s been accused of helping the Kremlin conduct foreign influence operations.
A 1,000-page Senate Intelligence Committee report released in 2020 also links him to former Trump 2016 campaign chair Paul Manafort and ex-MI6 spy Christopher Steele.
Deripaska and other members of Putin’s inner circle as well as 12 Russian businesses connected to them were blacklisted by the Treasury Department in 2018 over alleged international crimes. However, Donald Trump lifted sanctions on three companies connected to him despite objections from Congressional Democrats.
Deripaska has a home in Belgrave Square and is also rumoured to have a home at nearby Eaton Square
Mikhail Fridman was the seventh richest Russian, according to Forbes
Mikhail Fridman: Worth £10.4billion
The Russian business magnate, investor and philanthropist co-founded Alfa-Group, a multinational Russian conglomerate.
According to US business magazine Forbes, Mr Fridman, who has Israeli citizenship, was the seventh richest Russian as of 2017, worth some £10billion.
The Russian father-of-five now calls Britain his home after buying Athlone House in North London for £65million in 2016.
Together with fellow billionaires German Khan and Alexei Kuzmichev, Fridman owns Alfa Group and LetterOne investment groups.
Moscow-based Alfa Group’s interests span banking, telecoms and natural resources.
He netted £3.7billion in 2013 when the trio and partners sold shares in Russian oil giant TNK-BP.
Mikhail Fridman and his family bought up Athlone House in Hampstead for £65m
Igor Shuvalov: Worth £200million
Igor Shuvalov is a former Russian deputy prime minister and ally of Putin
Hugely wealthy Mr Shuvalov is a former Russian first deputy prime minister and now the Chairman of State Development Corporation VEB.RF.
Exceptionally close to Putin, who he idolises, he has a London flat. Alexei Navalny, the Russian anti-corruption campaigner, said that he owns a 5,380sqft penthouse at Whitehall Court in Westminster.
The flat, valued at £11.4 million, is believed to contain six bedrooms and a sitting room with a view of the River Thames.
In 2016 it was claimed he used his secret private jet to fly his wife’s Corgi dogs around Europe – including to Britain – for competitions because first class is ‘too uncomfortable’ for them.
The dogs have names like Andvol Pinkerton, Andvol Tsesarevich, Andvol Ostap Bender, Andvol Hugo Boss, Andvol I’m Your Idol and Fox Pack Gabby Joy of Elves, according to anti-corruption campaigner and lawyer Alexei Navalny.
The plane was used to chauffeur his wife Olga Shuvalova’s Corgis to a show in Windsor, according to Mr Navalny.
Mr Shuvalov already faces controversy over his penthouse flat overlooking the Ministry of Defence in London, and a castle in Austria.
He infuriated Russians by appearing to mock the millions of people living in cramped flats measuring only 215 square feet.
Father-of-four lawyer turned politician Mr Shuvalov, 49, is number three in the Russian government after Mr Putin and Prime Minister Dmtry Medvedev, and is in charge of economic policy at a time of crisis caused by Western sanctions, low oil prices and a low value rouble.
A suave English-speaking fixer with a reputation for solving problems for Mr Putin, he headed the successful organising committee for the 2018 World Cup bid.
The ultimate Putin loyalist, he said last year: ‘If a Russian feels any foreign pressure, he will never give up his leader. Never.
‘We will survive any hardship in the country – we will eat less food, use less electricity or, I don’t know, some other things we are all used to.
‘But if we feel that someone from outside wants to change our leader, and that it is not our will but the will that is forced upon us, we will be united as never before.’
The 5,380 sq ft penthouse at Whitehall Court (pictured), officially owned by a company belonging to the minister, emerged in an investigation by Alexei Navalny, a leading opponent of President Vladimir Putin
Andrey Kostin: Worth £375million
Vladimir Putin meets Andrey Kostin. Kostin has close ties to President Vladimir Putin and previously described sanctions against Russia as ‘economic war’.
Andrey Kostin is president and chairman of VTB Bank, Russia’s second-largest bank, which is controlled by the state.
Kostin has close ties to President Vladimir Putin and previously described sanctions against Russia as ‘economic war’.
VTB Bank’s sister company VTB Capital, based in London, is not subject to any sanctions.
In 2018 it emerged the Chelsea Flower show was reportedly struggled to find backers meaning a Russian bank set up by oligarch Mr Kostin, who is currently subject to US sanctions, has been allowed to sponsor a garden.
It was claimed in 2020 that Kostin tried to cover up claims Vladimir Putin had secretly moved to Sochi during the pandemic, with president going so far as to have a replica office built to convince Russians he’s still in Moscow, anti-Kremlin media reported.
The Kremlin said a photographed meeting between Putin and VTB Bank head Andrei Kostin on October 29 2020 happened at Novo-Ogaryovo – Putin’s state residence outside Moscow – but critics claimed that the encounter actually took place in Sochi.
The oligarchs already sanctioned
Boris Rotenberg: Worth £890million
Boris Rotenberg and his wife Karina Rotenberg posing for the cameras
Judo fan Boris Rotenberg and his brother Arkady were childhood friends and former sparring partners of Vladimir Putin.
The tycoon, 65, worked as a martial arts trainer as recently as the 1990s and is now vice president of Russia’s Judo Federation.
He co-owns SGM, the largest construction company for gas pipelines and electrical power supply lines in Russia with his brother, who is already sanctioned in the UK.
The married father-of-five is also a motorsports fan, and sponsors the SMP Racing Project, which supports young Russian drivers.
His wife Katerina broadcasts her luxury lifestyle to 28,000 fans on Instagram, including photos of her competing in horse riding, relaxing on a super yacht in the Mediterranean Sea, and attending numerous balls.
She displays her toned physique with captions such as ‘sports is my photoshop’, and the socialist also appeared on the cover of Russian Tatler.
Rotenberg’s son Roman, 40, graduated from the European Business School in London, and he also holds British citizenship. An investigation by Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny claimed he owned a £3.3million property in Belgravia.
The US Treasury claimed that Boris, and his brother, received billions of pounds worth contracts with Gazprom and for roads and other infrastructure used in the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.
Igor Rotenberg: Worth £810million
Russian billionaire Igor Rotenberg, one of those targeted by the UK sanctions today
Gas tycoon Igor Rotenberg, a 48-year-old married father-of-three, became a billionaire in dollar terms when he was handed a host of assets after his father Arkady Rotenbergr was sanctioned by the United States in 2014.
He is chairman of National Telematic Systems (NTS), and a shareholder in RT – Invest Transport Systems (RTITS), transport technology firms which the UK said were of ‘strategic importance to Russia’.
He owns a controlling stake in the oil and gas drilling company Gazprom Burenie. Igor also sold his stake in real estate company, TPS Real Estate, to his sister Lilia in 2018 after he was placed on the sanctions lists in the US.
The US Treasury said he was hit because he was ‘operating in the energy sector’ in Russia, and had ‘acquired significant assets from his father’.
Igor became a billionaire after being handed a raft of investments by his father Arkady – who is currently fighting his ex-wife over ownership of a £27million mansion in Surrey.
Gennady Timchenko: Worth £17.4billion
Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) high fives billionaire and businessman Gennady Timchenko playing ice hockey in Sochi
Hockey fanatic Gennady Timchenko, nicknamed ‘gangrene’ by his critics, is a one-time Soviet bureaucrat with an estimated fortune of £17.4billion. His family has links to the UK and once famously said: ‘You have to pay for everything in your life, even for your friendship with the president.’
The vast sum includes several private jets and a 130-foot superyacht, named after his wife Lena.
The 69-year-old father-of-three, a citizen of Russia, Finland and Armenia, has been friends with Putin since at least the early 1990s when he was an oil trader in St Petersburg.
The Russian president, then head of the city’s foreign relations committee, granted Timchenko a licence to export oil. He went on to co-found Gunvor, which went on to handle close to a third of all Russian oil exports, making Timchenko a fortune. Putin denied playing a part in Timchenko’s rise.
His oldest daughter Natalia, 43, went to Oxford and was once married to a Briton. The Times claims she had obtained British citizenship and lived in Kensington in a flat registered in the British Virgin Islands.
His younger daugher Xenia, 37, went to Edinburgh University in 2009 and is married to Gleb Frank, son of Putin’s former transport minister Sergey.
In 2014 the US Government sanctioned Timchenko, saying his ‘activities in the energy sector have been directly linked to Putin. Putin has investments in Gunvor and may have access to Gunvor funds’. Gunvor denied the Russian premier was a beneficiary.
Timchenko has assets in energy, transport and infrastructure, but has been sanctioned because of his shareholding in Bank Rossiya, which ‘supported the consolidation of Crimea’, according to the UK Government.
In 2013, he was handed France’s highest honour, the Chevalier of the Légion d’honneur, for his role in Franci-Russian relations, including creating a permanent exhibition of Russian art in the Louvre, and assisting Total SA, an oil and gas giant. Russian political writer Andrey Piontkovsky said the award ‘brought shame to the French state’.
