Liechtenstein proceeds with investigation against fugitive Russian banker

It is no secret that Europe, and London in particular, has for many years welcomed dissidents and opposition leaders from around the world, providing a safe shelter for many of them. It is also known than thousands of wealthy Russians found refuge in UK and other cozy corners of the EU, investing lavish amounts of money in business, banking and real estate. But no one can prove that all of them deserve the privilege of living here having in mind their unclear and even criminal background.

Georgy Bedzhamov

Tory MP Andrew Bridgen once again raised a very sensitive and controversial question in his recent query about granting golden visas to wealthy Russian businessmen involved in financial fraud and crimes. One these persons is the infamous Georgy Bedzhamov, who is accused in Russia and in Europe of various banking scams and wanted by Moscow since 2016. This person is seeking UK citizenship. According to MP Bridgen “London trades on its reputation as a safe place to put your money but it can’t be a haven for money launderers”.

Notably similar information about Bedzhamov’s activities came a few month ago from the European Parliament. MEP from Latvia Tatyana Zdanoka sent an official letter to the UK Home Secretary Priti Patel asking her to pay attention to the intentions of Bedzhamov, who is persistently seeking asylum in the UK. In her letter, MEP Zdanoka gives a summary of illegal activities of Bedzhamov in Russia as an organizer of a series of frauds in the Russian banking system.

One of the offices of Vneshprombank

According to her letter, after being accused by the court of ruining Russian Vneshprombank, a major bank with a £2.5 billion of assets, Mr. Bedzhamov fled to the UK where he faced accusations of a large-scale fraud with the assets of the bank and was put on the international wanted list by Interpol. Creditors from both the UK and the European Union who became victims of Mr. Bedzhamov’s affairs are now seeking recover some of the assets, if these can be found.

In April 2019, the UK High Court in London granted the creditors the right to pursue Mr. Bedzhamov’s wealth and issued a worldwide freezing order on an estimated £1.34 billion of his assets acknowledging credibility of the arguments about Mr. Bedzhamov’s involvement and key role in the fraud.

MEP Zdanoka warns the British authorities that Mr. Bedzhamov is currently seeking citizenship in the UK and addressed the Home Office with this request.

Further news on this highly sensitive and delicate subject came shortly from Europe’s tax paradise which is a tiny Principality of Liechtenstein.

Larisa Markus

The prosecution body of Liechtenstein confirmed an investigation into the illegal financial transactions of the fugitive Russian banker Georgy Bedzhamov. This person was convicted in absentia in 2016 and put on an international wanted list by Russia on charges of financial fraud that led to the bankruptcy of one of the leading banks - Vneshprombank. His sister and business partner Larisa Markus was convicted in 2017 and jailed for 8.5 years.

Bedzhamov is involved in many criminal cases and court proceedings both in Russia and Europe. So far, he has been unable to prove his innocence in the courts and get rid of many claims against him from Vneshprombank's depositors, whom he simply robbed. According to information from open sources, Bedzhamov, through criminal actions together with his sister Larisa Markus, stole and took out of Russia more than 2 billion dollars.

Liechtenstein authorities are investigating the former owner of Vneshprombank and his sister on suspicion of money laundering. Their accounts in local and Swiss banks received $143 million, including from the Russian Bobsleigh Federation. It began at least in 2016, according to the financial intelligence information of Liechtenstein and the representative of the Deposit Insurance Agency (DIA) of Russia who is suing Bedzhamov in the High court in London). The DIA acts as a bankruptcy trustee of the collapsed Vneshprombank which still owes creditors over 200 billion rubles ($2,7 billion).

"Liechtenstein has begun investigating on suspicion of money laundering in connection with the mentioned facts," Deputy attorney General of the Principality Frank Haun said in an interview, adding that at this stage of the investigation, he could not provide more details, including the names of suspects, companies and banks.

The DIA demands $1.75 billion from the banker, and his assets are frozen within this amount. Bedzhamov's known property is estimated much cheaper: the banker himself told the Court that his fortune was about $500 million, and his annual income was $2 million.

Bedzhamov's assets include a villa in France and real estate in London, but they are mortgaged to creditors. According to the DIA, the pledge is fictitious and created to protect assets from Vneshprombank. In September 2019, a High Court judge noted that after selling a stake (33%) in Badrutt's Palace Hotel AG on the shores of lake St. Moritz in Switzerland and deducting legal expenses, $12 million remained in Bedzhamov's accounts.

To find allegedly hidden assets, the DIA hired an investment company A1 (part of the Russian Alfa Group), and in addition to legal support for the case, it launched an advertising campaign to search for assets of Bedzhamov and Markus in Russia and the UK.

The DIA recently noted that "is aware of the initiation of criminal proceedings by law enforcement agencies of the Principality of Liechtenstein against the former co-owner of Vneshprombank Georgy Bedzhamov”.

So, what did Liechtenstein's financial intelligence find out?

The investigation into Bedzhamov and Markus is described in an analytical report from 2016 by the Deputy head of financial intelligence of Liechtenstein (Financial Intelligence Unit) Valartis (since 2019, he heads the FIU). According to a source familiar with the dispute between Bedzhamov and DIA, the documents signed by Schëba were intended for Liechtenstein banks Valartis and LGT, which appealed to the Liechtenstein Prosecutor's office.

They became interested in the operations of Bedzhamov and Marcus after the departure of the former owner of Vneshprombank from Russia to Monaco and the announcement that he’s been wanted internationally since 2016. The report may also refer to money withdrawn from Vneshprombank, writes the Deputy head of Liechtenstein financial intelligence.

More than 90 million Swiss francs were transferred to accounts linked to Bedzhamov and Markus, according to Liechtenstein's financial intelligence service. Basically, as follows from the report, the money was transferred to the account of Panamanian Orange Tree Investment, created in the interests of Bedzhamov, in the Liechtenstein Valartis Bank. There are also signs that about 40 million francs were transferred to the company's account in the Swiss Bank Vontobel.

Funds to Markus’ accounts came from the Swiss Bank Vontobel, to Bedzhamov's accounts - from Estonia and Switzerland, according to the financial intelligence service of Liechtenstein. "The money was mainly used to buy luxury yachts and real estate," the report said.

Panamanian Orange Tree Investment, in particular, received €31.9 million from Eurotex, about €18.8 million from Silverrow, €12.8 million rubles from IMET Group and €10.6 million from Venus Corporation, and about 40 million francs were transferred to the Swiss account of Orange Tree, the document notes.

The report also indicates that the financial intelligence service considers that “the British Silverrow and Eurotex offshore companies were operated from Moscow", both having the same email address. The companies were registered in Birmingham and Edinburgh, Silverrow was liquidated on September 6, 2016, according to data from the British registry.

Separately, Liechtenstein financial intelligence indicates that in 2013, Orange Tree received about €1 million from the Russian Bobsleigh Federation (the description indicates that the purpose of payments was an advance for sports equipment) and more than €130 thousand from the International Bobsleigh Federation from the LGT Bank account (the description of payments refers to "prize" and "contributions" in favor of the Russian Federation).

As for the outflow of funds, among other things, Schëb notes that Orange Tree transferred €21 million to the German shipyard Lurssen, and the transfers in favor of Lurssen are most likely related to the construction of the luxury yacht Ester III. The specialized portal Superyachtfan called Bedzhamov the owner of Ester III.  In 2016 it was sold in connection with a lawsuit by the French Bank BNP Paribas against Bedzhamov in the court of Gibraltar. The yacht was bought by the owner of the Liverpool football club, John Henry, who estimates its value at $90 million.

Among the relatively small expenses in the material is the transfer of €1.1 million to the British company Basel Properties, which is directly owned by Alina Zolotova (the same name as Bedzhamov's wife).

It is necessary to assume that the courts in Europe are unlikely to be tolerant and loyal to fugitive Russian businessmen. Their tearfull stories of persecution and threats to life in their homeland no longer evoke the same merciful response in the hearts of European judges as they did before. Similarly, the judicial authorities perceive as fairy tales the claims of Georgy Bedzhamov about falsification of charges against him in fraud and theft of other people's deposits.

It seems that the time of searching for "safe haven" in cozy European nooks and crannies for international scammers and corrupt officials is a thing of the past. Europe is already tired of the flow of fake dissidents and fraudsters from the former USSR. This is evidenced by the increasingly harsh and unambiguous decisions of the courts.

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