Roman Abramovich, owner of Chelsea FC, looks at fans after the UEFA Champions League Final between Manchester City and Chelsea at the Dragao Stadium on May 29, 2021, in Porto, Portugal.
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Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich has embarked on a sale of his most valuable asset in the United Kingdom in the latest move by Vladimir Putin’s inner circle to distance themselves from their fortune as Western sanctions take hold.
Kotb, 55, announced on Wednesday Chelsea Football Club sale In England, the crown jewel in a multibillion-dollar series has so far escaped the web of sanctions imposed by Western governments in an effort to stop Putin’s war.
The club, which Abramovich bought for 140 million pounds in 2003, is expected to sell for around 3 billion pounds ($4 billion). The billionaire is said to have written off £1.5 billion of debt owed to him by the club.
Meanwhile, a suite of London properties, including Kensington Palace worth £150m and the purchase of a £22m Chelsea Waterfront penthouse in 2018, could collectively fetch £200m.
The sale came a day before Western allies on Thursday added new names to their lists of sanctioned oligarchs, with both United State And the United kingdom Targeting Alisher Usmanov and others closely linked to the Kremlin. The sanctions will freeze their assets and restrict their travel.
In a statement on Wednesday, Abramovich – who has so far avoided taking a political stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – said the move was in the “club’s best interest” and added that all net proceeds from the sale would be donated to war victims. It comes after his move last week to transfer oversight of Chelsea to a charity.
The timing of the sale is notable, however, with British opposition Labor MP Chris Bryant saying Abramovich is “terrified of being sanctioned”, and is liquidating his assets.
Pursuing the origins of the oligarchy
Abramovich who $12.5 billion fortune Originally derived from the sale of Russian state assets following the fall of the Soviet Union, it has so far avoided the kind of sanctions that hit some of its peers.
But there are indications that the tide may be turning as Western authorities strengthen their determination to target Russia’s wealthy elite as the war enters its second week.
The sale of a property by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich in Kensington, London on March 2, 2022.
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On Thursday, French officials seized a yacht They say they are linked to Rosneft chief Igor Sechin as part of Europe’s ongoing efforts to locate and seize luxury assets. Similarly, the United States launched a task force to seize the yachts, luxury apartments and private jets of wealthy Russians with ties to Putin.
However, the clock is ticking as a targeted oligarch Transfer their assets to overseas territories And support their wealth with cryptocurrencies.
According to a CNBC analysis, Vagit Alekperov, the head of Russia’s Lukoil company, is sailing his yacht to Montenegro, while at least three yachts owned by other Russian billionaires are approaching from the Maldives.
Not moving fast enough
The government in Britain – a country that holds vast amounts of Russian wealth – has come under domestic pressure not to act fast enough on sanctions.
Hours before the Chelsea sale was announced, opposition Labor leader Keir Starmer called on Prime Minister Boris Johnson to impose sanctions on Abramovich.
“We must stand up to Putin and those who support his regime,” Starmer said of Abramovich. “He is a person of interest to the Ministry of the Interior because of his ties to the Russian state and his general association with corrupt activity and practices.”
But officials from the Ministry of the Interior and the National Crime Agency warned of legal challenges and investigations related to identifying Russian assets and then linking them to Putin, Quoted by The Times It could take “weeks and months”.
according to Guardian AnalysisHowever, the oligarchs already subject to US and EU sanctions have links to properties worth nearly £200m across London and surrounding local counties. Britain is currently seeking to expedite a new law that will make it more difficult to use real estate in the UK Dirty money shop.
Sightings of Abramovich’s property and conversations with potential Chelsea buyers are still ongoing.