Russian businessmen transferred assets worth $50 billion from Europe to Russia – Kommersant

Russian billionaires, under sanctions, withdrew assets worth at least $50 billion from European countries, the agency reported. Bloombergreferring to the recent move from Cyprus to Russia of United Medical Group CY Plc and MD Medical Group Investments Plc, which are controlled by businessmen Igor Shilov and Mark Kurtser.

According to Bloomberg, the transfer of United Medical Group CY Plc and MD Medical Group Investments Plc to Russian jurisdiction will help increase the total value of assets that have been relocated to Russia since February 2022, estimated at at least $50 billion.

As Bloomberg notes, double tax treaties have been suspended so that remaining in unfriendly jurisdictions such as Europe has become impractical for business.

Alexey Kuznetsov, a partner at B1, which previously operated in Russia under the Ernst & Young brand, says that currently money transfers from Cyprus to Russia are not working very well. “Russia now seems less evil than foreign countries,” said Natalya Kuznetsova, a partner at Business Solutions and Technologies, which previously worked in Russia under the Deloitte brand.

First Deputy Minister of Economy Ilya Torosov said at the Eastern Economic Forum that in 2023, 115 companies moved to domestic “offshore” zones, and in total there were 254 such companies.

However, as the agency notes, a number of the largest Russian raw materials and technology companies are still registered in Europe. For example, billionaire Andrei Melnichenko’s fertilizer producer EuroChem Group AG is based in Switzerland, while agricultural firm Ros Agro PLC has moved its listing to Kazakhstan and is working on re-registration from Cyprus. Globaltrans Investment Plc has moved to Abu Dhabi from Cyprus, while Russia’s second-largest gold mining company Polymetal International Plc re-registered in Kazakhstan last month.

Anastasia Larina