Former co-head of TCS Group Hughes accused Tinkov of defamation

The former co-head of TCS Group (the main company of Tinkoff Bank) Oliver Hughes accused the founder of Tinkoff Bank Oleg Tinkov of defamation. Relevant statement on his blog on Medium, Mr. Hughes posted after interview Mr. Tinkov, Elizaveta Osetinskaya (recognized as a foreign agent).

In an interview, Oleg Tinkov, among other things, said that Oliver Hughes, “in his understanding”, can continue to participate in the work of the bank.

“However, recently I suddenly found myself in the spotlight due to some negative comments made about me in the media by Oleg Tinkov. What Oleg said is false and damaging, and therefore I am forced to make important corrections, ”said Oliver Hughes.

He recalls that he was the executive director of the Tinkoff Group for 15 years, almost from the moment it was founded. Mr. Hughes’ career in Russia came to an “abrupt end” after the start of the military operation and after Mr. Tinkov was placed on the UK sanctions list. “AT March I moved to Dubai with my family,” says Oliver Hughes.

“In July, the UK passed a law making it a criminal offense to provide management or business advice to any Russian company. Therefore, I finally severed the few remaining ties that I had with Russian business,” writes Mr. Hughes. Oliver Hughes denied Oleg Tinkov’s statement that he continues to manage Tinkoff’s Russian business. “It’s just not true, and also slander,” said Mr. Hughes.

Since leaving the Russian business, Oliver Hughes has been advising a new startup called Breeze Ventures. It is a Singaporean company that is currently a subsidiary of TCS and will be spun off from TCS in the near future, Hughes said.

Maria Fedotova