The investigation accused the Cypriot authorities of helping Russian oligarchs

The International Association of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) stated that the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus have been helping Russian businessmen circumvent international sanctions for almost 10 years. According to investigators, businessmen from Russia who have been sanctioned have been investing in real estate in Cyprus since 2014. Their investments provoked a construction boom, especially in the northern part of Cyprus, which is not controlled by the authorities in Nicosia.

Journalists described money laundering schemes dating back to the ex-president of Cyprus, Nikos Anastasiadis, who held the highest post from 2013 to 2023. According to experts, before taking office, Anastasiadis founded a legal company that provided offshore services through fictitious persons and was very attractive to Russian clients. After becoming president, Anastasiadis transferred the company to his daughters. He also made visits to Moscow, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and concluded agreements with him on a closer economic partnership.

Among the Russian clients of Cypriot investment firms are 44 high-ranking civil servants or their close relatives. Of the 104 Russian billionaires included in the Forbes list, about two-thirds – 67 people – and their relatives are mentioned in Cypriot documents as investors. In particular, the big businessman Alexey Mordashov invested 1.4 billion dollars in Cypriot assets. Also, the money was transferred with the participation of the Abacus company, which is associated with the co-founder of the Alfa-group bank Peter Aven. Among the other Russian billionaires mentioned in the investigation are Roman Abramovich, businessman Konstantin Malofeev, who actively participated in the annexation of Crimea, cellist Sergey Roldugin, whom a number of investigations called “Vladimir Putin’s wallet”.

More than 270 journalists from 54 countries took part in the investigation. They relied on leaks from internal documentation of Cypriot banking and other financial services.

The legal firm founded by Nikos Anastasiadis answered the question of journalists that he has not owned the company since 2013 – he left it to his daughters – and it is not involved in any violations. The representative of the government of Cyprus stated that the republic is fighting money laundering and is conducting extensive work on the implementation of sanctions regulations.