19/05/23

UK: Russian fintech and Kalashnikov owner added to sanctions list.

As published on standard.co.uk, Friday 19 May, 2023.

Oil and gas tycoons, Russia’s biggest fintech and the owner of the company behind the AK-47 are among those listed as part of a fresh wave of sanctions as the UK ramps up its economic offensive against Russia.

A further 86 individuals and entities have been added to the government’s list of financial sanctions targets, which seek to penalise businesses and individuals connected to Russia’s capacity to fund and wage its war on Ukraine, with a focus on organisations involved in energy, metals, defence, transport, and financial sectors.

A suite of senior members of Russian natural has giant Gazprom take up the lion’s share of the new list, alongside Alan Lushnikov, a former Russian Deputy Minister for Transport, who owns a majority stake in the Kalashnikov weapons manufacturer, as well as neobank Tinkoff, which had over 20 million customers in 2021.

Tinkoff’s parent company, TCS Holdings, was listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2013 and grew to reach a market cap of over £10 billion before its shares were suspended from the exchange last year. Its founder, Oleg Tinkov, previously controlled a stake worth billions of pounds and was added to UK sanctions last year. He sold his stake to Russian Billionaire Vladimir Potanin, who is also on the sanctions list.

He reportedly lives in London with his family and last year said he had renounced his Russian citizenship, writing on a social media post: “I can’t and won’t be associated with a fascist country that started a war with their peaceful neighbour and killing innocent people daily.”

The European Union had already applied economic sanctions to Tinkoff bank in February.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said: “Putin and his supporters must – and will - pay the price for their illegal invasion of Ukraine.

“That’s why through today’s new sanctions we are increasing the economic pressure on Putin– making it harder for him to wage his illegal war and inflict untold suffering on innocent Ukrainians.”