New details reveal Abramovich and Putin's controversial connection is beyond denial

The former Chelsea owner's tenuous links to Vladimir Putin have recently become far more concrete...

Adam Ingoe
5th December 2023
Image: Wikimedia Commons
From offshore bank accounts nestled in a Mediterranean tax haven to the intricate web of shell companies facilitating money laundering, Roman Abramovich's ties to Vladimir Putin have long been shrouded in speculation. The intricate dance between the former Chelsea owner and the Russian president has faced intense scrutiny, with the UK government freezing Abramovich's assets and bank accounts as part of sweeping sanctions on Russian oligarchs, a move triggered by his personal connections to Putin amidst the ongoing Russo-Ukraine war, now stretching for 1 year and 9 months.

Despite persistent denials under questioning about his friendship with Putin, Abramovich's decades-old partnership with the Russian President paints a different picture. Their paths first crossed during a tumultuous period in Russia, where Abramovich, already a well-established figure in the gas and oil industry, amassed wealth by acquiring remarkably cheap shares of former state-owned oil and gas companies. This accumulation of fortune not only elevated Abramovich's status among his contemporaries but also forged a strong connection with the then-emerging politician and former KGB spy, Vladimir Putin, who had yet to ascend to the presidency or any significant political role.

Is there more to these rumours than meets the eye?

Beyond the public disavowals, the lingering question remains: is there more to these rumours than meets the eye? Contrary to common belief, the indirect links between Abramovich and Putin persist, weaving a narrative that extends beyond mere denial and into the intricate realms of wealth, power, and influence.

More recently, the Bureau of Investigative Journalism and BBC Newsnight put these denials into question after their project known as the Cyprus Confidential, which uncovered that Mr Abramovich and Vladimir Putin are not connected directly but are still financially linked via two of Putin’s close friends, including Sergei Roldugin, a cellist known as “Putin’s wallet”. The Cyprus confidential is on par with The Panama Papers, a massive leak of confidential documents from the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, which were made public in April 2016. The leaked documents, totalling $11.5 million records, exposed the offshore financial activities of numerous individuals, including politicians, celebrities, and business leaders from around the world. The Cyprus Confidential is very similar; this time, it helps understand the contemporary link between Putin and Abramovich.

Roman Abramovich was the ultimate owner of two Cypriot shell companies, Finoto Holdings Ltd and Grosora Holding Ltd. In 2003 each of these companies acquired a 12.5% stake in Russia’s TV advertising company “TV International” for a meagre price of $130,000 each. By 2010, each of these holdings made a staggering $30 million each in dividends. In late 2010 however, Finoto sold its share to another Cypriot shell company called Med Media Network, and Grosora then followed suit and sold its share to the Cypriot shell company known as Namiral Trading. Despite video international reporting turnovers of $1 billion, both stakes were sold at the suspiciously low price of $30 million each.

Here is where the links get stronger.

The ultimate beneficiary of Med Media Network was a man called Sergei Roldugin, a cellist, close friend of Putin since birth, and the godfather to his daughter. The ultimate beneficiary of Namiral Trading was a man named Alexander Plekhov, who is also very closely associated with Putin. What this web of transactions, stake selling and buying suggests is that Roman Abramovich effectively transferred a 25% stake in a Russian multi-billion dollar company to Putin for a price that appears to be below fair market value.

Thus, suggesting the pair are linked through an intricate web of selling, buying and a transfer of assets all to make their way to Putin himself.

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