UK sanctions the shady network funding Putin's lavish lifestyle

• Today sanctions hit Putin’s financial network, including ex-wife and cousins - tightening the vice on the President and his inner circle
• Putin's official assets are modest, with his lifestyle funded by a cabal of family, friends and elites
• The UK has now sanctioned more than 1,000 individuals and 100 entities, including oligarchs worth £117 billion

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss is today (Friday 13 May) announcing fresh sanctions on Putin's ‘wallet’ of family and friends– those whom he rewards with state positions and wealth in return for their undying loyalty. 

 
Official records list modest assets for President Putin including: a small flat in St Petersburg, two Soviet-era cars from the 1950s, a trailer, and a small garage. 

In reality, Putin relies on his network of family, childhood friends, and selected elite who have benefited from his rule and in turn support his lifestyle. Their reward is influence over the affairs of the Russian state that goes far beyond their formal positions.

Today's sanctions will hit this cabal who owe Putin their wealth and power, and in turn support Putin and his war machine.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: 

"We are exposing and targeting the shady network propping up Putin's luxury lifestyle and tightening the vice on his inner circle. We will keep going with sanctions on all those aiding and abetting Putin's aggression until Ukraine prevails." 

Putin's lavish lifestyle has regularly been on display, with reports exposing links to a £566 million yacht and the $1 billion 'Putin's Palace' - officially owned by close associate, Arkady Rotenberg, who was sanctioned in December 2020.
 

His family members form a core contingent of his inner circle – receiving positions of power due to their affiliation to the regime. The individuals sanctioned today include: 

• Alina Kabaeva, a retired Olympic gymnast. Kabaeva has risen to become Chair of the Board of the National Media Group, reportedly the largest private Russian media company. She is alleged to have a close personal relationship with Putin, and previously sat as a Deputy in the Duma for Putin's United Russia.  

• Anna Zatseplina, grandmother of Alina Kabaeva and associate of Gennady Timchenko - a longstanding Putin associate, sanctioned by the UK on 22 February 2022, from whom she has reportedly received a luxury flat in Moscow. 
• Lyudmila Ocheretnaya, former First Lady of the Russian Federation and ex-wife of Putin. Since her divorce from Putin in 2014, Ocheretnaya has benefited from preferential business relationships with state-owned entities.

• Igor Putin, first cousin of President Vladimir Putin, and a Russian businessman. Igor Putin is Director of Pechenga International Sea Port. 

• Mikhail Putin, a Russian businessman and relative of President Vladimir Putin. Mikhail Putin is Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of SOGAZ Insurance and Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of Gazprom. 

• Roman Putin, first cousin once removed of President Vladimir Putin. Roman Putin is publicly open about his relation to Putin and emphasises how this family connection enabled his company, Putin Consulting, to help foreign investors in Russia.

• Mikhail Shelomov, a Russian business owner and Putin's first cousin, once removed. Shelomov's company Akcept LLC has allegedly shared employees with Binom JSC, the firm registered as owning 'Putin's Palace'.  Shelomov, through his firm Akcept LLC, is also a shareholder in Bank Rossiya, a bank with close Kremlin links, and run by key Putin lieutenants, sanctioned by the UK on 22 February 2022. 

Putin has also routinely placed his confidants and loyal supporters into strategic positions within the State, expanding his personal reach into all corners of the Russian economy. Those sanctioned today are: 

• Alexander Plekhov, a close friend of Putin. He has benefited from his relationship with Putin and his company Vital Development Corporation has benefited from significant state patronage.
• Mikhail Klishin, an Executive in Bank Rossiya, and a member of the Board of Directors at SOGAZ.  

• Vladimir Kolbin, the son of Putin's childhood friend and alleged business associate, Peter Kolbin. Vladimir has benefited from and supported the Government of Russia acting as General Director of Gelendzhik Seaport LLC. 
• Yuri Shamalov, son of Nikolai Shamalov (sanctioned by the UK in 2014), and brother of Putin's former son-in-law, Kirill (sanctioned by the UK on 24 February 2022). Yuri is a member of the new elite of children of Putin's closest associates, and has risen rapidly to become President of Gazfond, and Member of the Board of Directors of Gazprombank. 
• Viktor Khmarin is a Russian lawyer and businessman, who is a friend and relative-by-marriage of Putin. Khmarin has owned a number of businesses including LLC NefteProduktServis, which operated in the Russian energy sector.

Today's sanctions isolate the family members and financiers deep within Putin's inner circle, compounding the pressure on Putin as he continues his senseless invasion into Ukraine. 

Since the invasion, the UK has sanctioned over 1,000 individuals and 100 entities, including hitting oligarchs with a net global worth of over £117 billion.  

Notes to Editors:

Asset freeze

An asset freeze prevents any UK citizen, or any business in the UK, from dealing with any funds or economic resources which are owned, held or controlled by the designated person. UK financial sanctions apply to all persons within the territory and territorial sea of the UK and to all UK persons, wherever they are in the world. It also prevents funds or economic resources being provided to or for the benefit of the designated person.

Travel ban

A travel ban means that the designated person must be refused leave to enter or to remain in the United Kingdom, providing the individual is an excluded person under section 8B of the Immigration Act 1971.

Transport sanctions

Recently introduced powers make it a criminal offence for any Russian aircraft to fly or land in the UK, and give the government powers to remove aircraft belonging to designated Russian individuals and entities from the UK aircraft register, even if the sanctioned individual is not on board. Russian ships are also banned from UK ports.

Pen Profiles on individuals sanctioned 

Family:

• Alina Kabaeva, is a Russian retired Olympic rhythmic gymnast, former Deputy in the State Duma, and Chair of the Board of Directors of the National Media Group, which is reportedly the largest private Russian media company. The National Media Group controls television stations, including already-sanctioned Channel One. She is also rumoured to be the current partner of Putin and it is reported that he has tried to reduce her visibility since the invasion began. For example, a couple of weeks after the invasion, the National Media Group website was updated to remove her name, along with any reference to the Board of Directors. Kabaeva is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze.  
• Anna Zatseplina, grandmother of former Russian rhythmic gymnast Alina Kabaeva. Zatseplina is also associated with Gennady Timchenko, from whom she has reportedly received a luxury flat in Moscow. Timchenko was sanctioned by the UK on 22 February, and is a major shareholder in Bank Rossiya. Bank Rossiya also has important stakes in the National Media Group, for which her granddaughter is Chair of the Board of Directors. Zatseplina is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze.  
• Lyudmila Ocheretnaya, former First Lady of the Russian Federation and ex-wife of Putin. Since her divorce from Putin in 2014, Ocheretnaya has benefited from preferential business relationships with state-owned entities and exhibited significant unexplained wealth. Ocheretnaya is a close associate of Putin and obtains a financial or material benefit from this association. Ocheretnaya is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze.  
• Igor Putin, first cousin of President Vladimir Putin, and a Russian businessman. Igor Putin is Director of Pechenga International Sea Port, which is a transport company of strategic significance to the Government of Russia. Igor Putin is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze. 
• Mikhail Putin, a Russian businessman who is reportedly a relative of President Vladimir Putin. Mikhail Putin is Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of SOGAZ Insurance. SOGAZ Insurance and Dmitri Lebedev, the Chairman of the Board of Directors at SOGAZ Insurance, were both sanctioned by the UK in March. Mikhail Putin is also Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of Gazprom. Gazprom is a global energy company and Russia's largest joint stock company, and its CEO, Alexei Miller, was sanctioned by the UK in March. The Russian Government controls majority of Gazprom shares, and Mikhail Putin is therefore obtaining a benefit from or supporting the Government of Russia. Mikhail Putin is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze. 
• Roman Putin, first cousin once removed of President Vladimir Putin and son of Igor Putin. In an interview in 2020, Roman Putin said that he 'fully support[s] the President's policy'. Roman Putin was also the Director of his own company, Putin Consulting. Roman Putin is publicly open about his relation to Putin and emphasises how this family connection enabled his company, Putin Consulting, to help foreign investors in Russia. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine on 24 February, Roman Putin continues to use the Putin family name to obtain benefit, both in the political and business sphere. Roman Putin is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze. 
• Mikhail Shelomov, a Russian business owner and Putin's first cousin, once removed. Shelomov's only publicly recorded job is said to have been arranged for him at high levels of the Russian Government. As well as the familial link to Putin, who grew up in the same household as Shelomov's mother, Shelomov has been linked through business dealings. Shelomov's company Akcept LLC has allegedly shared employees with Binom JSC, the firm registered as owning 'Putin's Palace' on the Black Sea Coast. Shelomov, through his firm Akcept LLC, is also a shareholder in Bank Rossiya, which is a key stakeholder in the National Media Group. Shelomov owns Akcept LLC, which operates in the Russian financial services sector, a sector of strategic significance to the Government of Russia. Shelomov is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze. 

Financiers:   

• Alexander Plekhov, a Russian businessman and reportedly an associate of Putin. Plekhov holds a director level role in Vital Development Corporation, a Russian biochemical company and producer of COVID-19 testing kits that were supplied to medical institutions across Russia. He has benefited from his relationship with Putin and his company Vital Development Corporation has benefited from significant state patronage. Therefore, Plekhov is carrying on business in a sector of strategic and economic significance to the Government of Russia. While his official role is running Vital Development Corporation, Plekhov is reportedly managing offshore companies involved in hiding Putin's secret wealth. Plekhov is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze. 
• Mikhail Klishin, an Executive in Bank Rossiya and a member of the Board of Directors at SOGAZ. SOGAZ is a major Russian reinsurance company which reinsured the construction of a bridge between the Russian mainland and the Crimean peninsula. SOGAZ was designated by the UK in March. As Director of SOGAZ, Klishin is continuing business in the financial services, which is of strategic and economic significance to the Russian Government. Klishin is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze. 
    
• Vladimir Kolbin, a Russian businessman and General Director of Gelendzhik Seaport LLC, which has invested heavily into the infrastructure of the Gelendzhik Seaport. Through his position as General Director, Kolbin is carrying on business in a sector of strategic significance to the Government of Russia. Vladimir Kolbin is also the son of the late Pyotr Kolbin, who was a close associate of President Putin. Kolbin is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze.  
   
• Yuri Shamalov, President of Gazfond and Member of the Board of Directors of Gazprombank. Gazprombank is the main channel for financing Russian Oil and Gas, and is the financial arm of Gazprom. Yuri Shamalov is also the son of Nikolai Shamalov and brother of Kirill Shamalov, who are both currently sanctioned by the UK. Nikolai is a close associate of Putin, and Kirill was previously married to Putin's younger daughter Katerina Tikhanova (who was also sanctioned by the UK on 8 April 2022). Shamalov is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze.  
   
• Viktor Khmarin is a Russian lawyer and businessman, who is a friend and relative-by-marriage of Putin. Khmarin has owned a number of businesses including LLC NefteProduktServis, which operated in the Russian energy sector. This is a sector of strategic significance to the Government of Russia. Khmarin has therefore obtained a benefit from or supported the Russian Government. Since 2011, Khmarin has also been the honorary consul of the Seychelles islands in St Petersburg. He is subject to a travel ban and asset freeze.