The US Treasury recorded “suspicious transactions” of Russian oligarchs shortly before February 24, 2022

A number of representatives of the Russian business elite in January and February 2022, shortly before the entry of Russian troops into Ukraine and the sanctions reaction of Western countries, began to make “suspicious transactions”. This is stated in the report (.pdf) The US Treasury FinCen Agency for Combating Financial Crimes, which recorded a massive restructuring of assets and their transfer to relatives by Russian oligarchs. The Russian service of the BBC drew attention to the material.

The names of entrepreneurs from Russia, whose financial transactions are mentioned in the document, are not named. “One of the Russian oligarchs sent monthly credit card payments from his account in Switzerland, but these payments increased in January and February 2022,” an example of suspicious financial activity by an unnamed entrepreneur is given in the FinCen report.

According to the agency, several representatives of the Russian business elite transferred large sums of money to their children shortly before being included in the sanctions lists of Western countries. Later, on behalf of the relatives of entrepreneurs, operations were carried out to purchase real estate and luxury goods.

On January 6, The Guardian newspaper reported that shortly before the imposition of Western sanctions against Roman Abramovich, the entrepreneur transferred assets worth $4 billion to his children. it occurred in early February 2022, three weeks before Russia recognized the independence of the LPR and DPR and the entry of Russian troops into Ukraine.

Andrey Sapozhnikov