Million dollar agreement: how Abramovich carried out a scheme with Putin’s “wallets”

Abramovich became Putin's intermediary / Collage 24 Channel

Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich denies ties to President Vladimir Putin. But declassified documents reveal a secret agreement between him and the Russian dictator's so-called “wallets.”

They write about this in Russia, citing documents that became available thanks to the leak of corporate papers of Cypriot law firms. The publication received these documents while participating in the international investigative project Cyprus Confidential. 24 Channel.

Abramovich helped Putin

Russian media recalled that when Putin came to power in 2000, he needed control over television channels.

Roman Abramovich played the role of an intermediary in the transfer of the most important assets for Russian television from people close to the family of former Russian President Boris Yeltsin to friends of the new President Putin, the material says.

It is noted that this happened not only with Channel One, but also, as it turned out, with the largest seller of television advertising in the country – the Video International group.

Putin's friend comes into play

Thanks to the leak of corporate papers of Cypriot law firms, the Russian oligarch bought a quarter of the Video International group back in 2003, and already in 2010 he sold the stake to the companies of Putin’s friend, cellist Sergei Roldugin. He is considered the “wallet” of the Russian president.

Roldugin is considered “Putin’s wallet” for a reason. It is known that he acquired such a dubious reputation after the release of the international investigation Panama Papers, from which it became clear that Putin’s friend, not being a businessman, means the owner of several offshore companies through which billions of dollars pass.

According to hostile media, it was believed that friends and associates of the former Minister of Press, Broadcasting and Media of the Russian Federation Mikhail Lesin, a man close to the Yeltsin family, sold Video International in 2010 to the structures of Rossiya Bank, which is a longtime friend of President Putin Yuri Kovalchuk.

However, according to a data leak, it is known that back in 2003, the founder and president of Video International, Lesin’s friend, Yuri Zapol, who had 41.5% of Video International, sold 25% to Roman Abramovich’s structures.

“The agreement was strange because it did not look like a sale, but rather like an attraction of unheard-of generosity – according to documents, 25% of the Video International group went to Abramovich for only 8 million rubles (about 270 thousand dollars),” the investigation says.

Abramovich made money from Video International

And a year later, as the material says, this package brought Abramovich dividends in the amount of $1.8 million, that is, almost seven times more than what was paid.

In addition, according to a data leak, it became known that Yuri Zapol signed two agreements on September 10, 2003: 12.5% of Video International were sold to the Cypriot companies Finoto Holdings and Grosora Holdings. Interestingly, the companies “locked” themselves with offshore companies owned by Roman Abramovich’s Sara Trust.

What happened next

In 2010, Video International was sold to the structures of Yuri Kovalchuk and businessmen close to him. The sale was preceded by a campaign to reduce the price of the asset: a special law was passed limiting the share of the TV advertising seller in the market to 35%.

“It was directly directed against Video International, whose share was twice as large. But after the group was sold into the right hands, it turned out that the law was not so terrible in fact,” the publication writes. They also added that Video International did not have to give up clients, it simply transferred some of the TV channels to “consulting” mode.

But already in 2014, President Putin abolished the threshold for advertising dominance on television.

The Cyprus data leak indicates that already in December 2010, the Cypriot firms Finoto Holdings and Grosora Holdings sold 25% of the Video International group for $40 million.

What final role did Roldugin play?

According to the leak, it is known that the buyers were Med Media Network and Namiral Trading, also from Cyprus, companies associated with the godfather of Putin’s daughter, cellist Sergei Roldugin, an old friend of Putin.

The owner of Med Media Network was his Panamanian company International Media Overseas, which was featured in the international journalistic investigation Panama Papers. And the owner of Namiral Trading was Alexander Plekhov, an entrepreneur close to the founder of Rossiya Bank, Yuri Kovalchuk. It is noted that in some cases Plekhov acted under a power of attorney from Roldugin.

Roldugin and Kovalchuk did not answer questions from journalists for this investigation.

How Abramovich lives

• The Russian oligarch owns masterpieces by world-famous artists. It is known that his collection included masterpieces by Malevich, Picasso, Monet and other masters. However, many of them were bought anonymously, and now their fate is unknown.
• It is known that back in 2018, Abramovich and his ex-wife Daria Zhukova already owned 369 pieces of art, valued at $962 million.
• It is noted that three days before the full-scale invasion, Abramovich conceded to his ex-wife Zhukova and their beneficial shares in the trust became 51% to 49%.