The Russian Edition of "Important Stories", the French newspaper Le Monde and the Center for the Study of Corruption and Organization (OCCRP) published an investigation into OpenLux dedicated to owners of companies registered in Luxembourg. According to journalists, more than a thousand Russians were found in the list of owners. In addition to two dozen businessmen from Forbes rating, it turned out to be the former and current state-owned officers, as well as their major contractors.
Russian citizens, including top managers of Russian Railways, Rosneft and Gazprom, used Luxembourg companies in order to own real estate in other European countries. Through them, you can get tax advantages under transactions with shares, up to complete liberation of profits from the sale of shares from taxes. Luxembourg is also attractive for banks - here you can spend special deals that will bring problem assets for the balance, comments on "important stories" partner Paragon Advice Group Alexander Zakharov. Thanks to the agreements with other European countries until 2016-2017, Luxembourg also used to minimize taxes at ownership of real estate in Europe.
Among the defendants of the list was Sergey Tony - the son of Deputy Director of Russian Railways Oleg Tony. According to "important stories", Tony Jr. through Luxembourg companies owns assets worth more than 50 million euros. Real estate another 40 million euros belongs to the investment fund, which is connected with it.
Palaces and villas began to appear at the Tony family in 2003-2004, almost at the same time when Tony-Sr. only went to work in Russian Railways, the authors of the investigation. Among the property, the son of the top manager of the State Committee found an old castle in France, an apartment in Paris between the Louvre and the Triumphal Arch, two villas on the Cote d'Azur, in London, the estate in Prague, two houses, three apartments and land in the resort province Alicante in Spain And even the railway depot in Germany. Investment Fund UFG Global Commercial & Hospitality Real Estate Fund, one of whose directors is Sergey Tony, owns commercial real estate in Germany, the Netherlands and Italy.
Journalists also found in the list of top managers Gazprom - Andrei Goncharenko and Anatolia Corzheruk. So, Goncharenko since 2009 owns land and buildings at an elite French resort near Nice. His company PMB Real Estate bought the territory for almost 3 million euros, and buildings - almost 7 million euros. Almost 29 million euros were spent on the arrangement of the site for 10 years, indicated in the investigation.
Another company Goncharenko - Rossa Holding - belongs to the mansion in the suburbs of Paris. The company bought this house in 2007 for almost 7.7 million euros and sold it in 2017, the materials of "important stories" says.
In 2014, Goncharenko bought one of the most expensive homes in London - Townhouse Hanover Lodge. According to Daily Mail, the purchase cost 120 million pounds. The media called the owner of the real estate oligarch with an unknown source of funds - from 2011 to 2014 he bought four mansion in the country. Goncharenko lawyers stated that he received a "significant profit" when in the 1990s he worked in the spheres of real estate, road transport and forestry.
At the former Gazpromovsky adviser, Anatoly Corzeruk was recorded by three Luxembourg firms, which in 2008-2009 acquired real estate in the French seaside resorts. Ex-adviser Gazprom also belongs to the mansion in the center of Paris, half an hour walk from the Eiffel Tower. The total value of all French real estate at the time of purchase amounted to more than 33 million euros.
In 2013, the media wrote that Goncharenko and Cossacks were suspected of extortion from large contractors Gazprom: Goncharenko and his subordinates allegedly did not pay a businessman to Nikolai Prikhodko more than 3 billion rubles for the work performed under the contracts and transferred money to accounts affiliated firms. Also, they allegedly tried to gain control over construction companies Prikhodko. How ended the investigation is unknown. Goncharenko and Kozeruk left Gazprom Invest South. Now Goncharenko owns the building company "Horizon". Kozeruk was headed by one of the largest developers in Moscow - GVSU Center. On the Board of Directors of the latter, it consists with Boris Rothenberg.
The authors of the investigation note that Luxembourg companies were also used for major transactions. In 2014, Rosneft bought 13% of the Italian tire Giant Pirelli worth almost 553 million euros "at the expense of pension funds and financial institutions." Journalists call the transaction "not the most transparent". The paper ended up with people, "close to the leadership" of the oil company.
The publication notes that at the time of the transaction with the share in Pirelli owner of the Long Term Investments Luxembourg was the Moscow Firm "Long-term investments", which at that time belonged to the dance teacher from Moscow Aye White. A year later, the investigation says, instead of Ayi, the founder of "long-term investments" became the company "Regionfinansress". Her own was Natalia Bogdanova, who had never disposed of large assets before and lived in the Spare District of Kazan. In 2017, Sergey Sudarikov became the owner of the "long-term investment", the main owner of the Region group. The interlocutors of the "Vedomosti" called the financial director of Rosneft Petra Lazarev "Informal Co-owner" of the group "Region". The company themselves denied links information.
Rosneft
What never acquired a share in Pirelli, and cooperates with her in retail business.