According to a newspaper report, Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich (56) transferred assets worth several billion dollars to his children before the start of his homeland’s war of aggression against Ukraine. This is evident from hacked documents that the British ‘Guardian’ has. Accordingly, ten secret offshore trusts were reorganized in early February last year.
“The sweeping review of Abramovich’s financial affairs began just days after governments threatened to impose sanctions on Russian oligarchs in the event of an invasion,” the report said. Therefore, the question arises whether they were created “to protect the oligarch’s immense wealth from the threat of asset freezing.”
Money tucked away in tax havens
As a result, the children became owners of Abramovich’s status symbols, such as luxury real estate, a fleet of superyachts, helicopters and private jets. According to The Guardian, the documents come from hacked data from a Cypriot financial services company that was leaked to the newspaper. This shows how the oligarch had hidden his wealth in complicated constructions in tax havens.
Abramovich was placed on the EU and UK sanctions list in March 2022. Unlike those close to Putin, his relatives were not subject to sanctions. The “Guardian” quoted sanctions experts, according to which the reorganization of his assets may have been designed to circumvent sanctions, but is not illegal. Abramovich and his children did not respond to detailed questions, the British newspaper reported. The former owner of English Premier League club Chelsea denies links to the Kremlin and is seeking legal action to defend against the EU measures. (SDA)