The shadow Russian network in Singapore

Recent press reports indicate that the Singapore authorities have been signalled about the activities of Russian-born citizen of Singapore Aleksandro David Cano Laskin, whose business dealings and shifting identities reveal a deeper story about Russian networks adapting to global pressure against aggressor state.

Across Europe, Russian-linked networks are under intense scrutiny from law enforcement and watchdog groups. Their influence operations, money channels, and front companies are routinely flagged, especially since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Even in countries traditionally more accommodating—such as Hungary—Russian actors face unprecedented constraints.

In Asia, however, the landscape looks different. Profit motives and looser oversight have allowed Russian-linked personalities more space to manoeuvre. Governments in Armenia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan have already been pressed by the EU to curb sanction evasion, while Chinese firms have already faced sanctions, and Indian oil traders have begun scaling back their Russian ties. Yet, pockets of tolerance remain. Some Russians believe that Singapore can be one of them.

Recent revelations surrounding Aleksandro David Cano Laskin – or Alex Cano as he calls himself- suggest how Russians are exploiting these spaces. What began as a commercial dispute escalated into a case that peeled back multiple layers of identity changes and erased histories. The dispute itself was straightforward: a Singaporean company contracted a European consultancy but refused payment. When pressed by a police licensed debt recovery agency, Alex Cano lashed out—not just legally, but with aggression that startled investigators. “We have dealt with many debtors, but this was extraordinary,” one agency representative told us.

“Instead of facing his obligations, he accused us of harassment. He filed a court case that us demanding him to pay the debt, which distressed him!  It was an outrageous display of arrogance.”

This defiance prompted deeper scrutiny. Investigators soon discovered that Alex Cano is neither of Japanese nor of Spanish origin, as it could be suggested by his name and had cycled through multiple names and identities. The cosmopolitan flair of his current name—Aleksandro David Cano Laskin—in reality had to hide his origin, which was – what a surprise!!! - Russian.

More strikingly, open-source traces of his earlier life had been almost entirely erased. “It was clear that a systematic digital scrub had taken place,” one investigator said. “There is virtually no footprint left.”

Leads eventually suggested that Cano’s original identity was Aleksandr Nikolayevich Pirozhinsky. Moreover, even members of his family in Russia also changed their names. His brother Sergey Nikolayevich Pirozhinsky changed his name to Sergey Shishkin. All the records tied to him had disappeared from both Russian and international databases. Cano’s current name, stitched together from seemingly global origins, bore no link to his actual family background. The name of his wife Sakurako Yamagishi has been noticed only in court proceedings in Singapore in 2024 for the case of falsifying employment documents. In any case the name Alex Cano used was in no way linked with his past or relationships. Investigators concluded it was deliberately crafted to obscure his Russian roots.

Yet, until 2014, Cano had openly embraced his Russian identity. Even more, he was officially a publisher of Russkij Singapur (Russian Singapore) magazine, ran companies like Ural Asia Pte, Zapad invest or Gazbank, and sat on the board of Singapore’s Media Publishers Association alongside international brands. He cultivated the image of a Russian bridge-builder in Asia, a gate for Russians to Singapore. There are plenty of old Facebook photos from different social events, which were impossible to erase and which show the active social life of Alex Cano, almost in James Bond style.

Then, almost overnight, that identity vanished. His magazine shut down, all the publications, archive or ever references to articles disappeared. His Russian-linked companies were dissolved. Names of those who remained changed to remove any reference to Russia. His digital presence evaporated. “This is not normal entrepreneurial behaviour,” a cyber analyst observed. “It matches patterns of intelligence-linked identity clean-up operation. For the moment, we cannot track his links deeper and are not confident what, really, we are dealing with – a state-linked identity concealment or private cover-up operation”.

Despite the identity concealment operation dealings of Alex Cano already raised some red flags. Our source in Singapore’s financial authority told us that local banks “outbanked” him, and all his accounts in Singapore were closed. To outbank someone is an industry jargon meaning banks have refused or terminated services based on internal compliance assessments. So, Alex Cano is unable to use Singapore as a financial hub and shifted to Malaysian banks like United Overseas Bank (UOB), online financial services like Revolute or Wise, and, increasingly, to cryptocurrency transactions. Still, when he meets new potential clients, he introduces himself as a businessman providing clients with financial services in Singapore. Those who believed him soon heavily regretted.

As one his clients discovered, financial services of Alex Cano look more “financial robbery, not services”. He recalled being lured in with promises of streamlined financial and administrative services, only to have substantial sums disappear once trust was established. “He is very skilful in creating credibility and trust at first,” the victim said, “but once the money flow grows, he vanishes into excuses about compliance forms or bank delays. He disappears, money disappear. It’s theft.” The victim has asked police licensed agency to deal with the debt and filed a court case in Singapore. “The way he steals your money is shockingly simple, one can not imagine it could happen in any civilised country like in Singapore”.

And here we come to the even stranger part of the story. When the person addressed the police licensed debt recovery agency, which is authorised to settle exactly such kind of cases Alex Cano, unlike any other client, started to attack the agency. When the agency faced such an attack, first they were shocked, then they reported the Singapore police force and started to investigate the person. It is difficult to imagine anyone in Singapore behaving like Alex Cano without a strong backing, our informed source told. It is now under investigation whether it is a mighty foreign agency, which helped him to change his identity, or an organized group behind him, the source said. But it is inambiguous that investigation in Alex Cano activities will allow Singapore authorities and not only them to see how Russians, who advertised Russia before 2014 and tried to hide any links after, transformed and adopted to new realities.

For now, Cano continues to operate, relying on a patchwork of online banking and digital assets. But his activities—company shells, changed identity, and Russian ties—have already drawn attention. As one compliance analyst put it: “If Singapore wants to maintain credibility as a global financial hub, this is exactly the kind of case it cannot afford to ignore.”

Disclaimer: This investigation is based on open-source records, corporate filings, and confidential intelligence assessments. The subject did not respond to requests for comment addressed to him by EUReporter. All information is presented in good faith for public awareness and scrutiny.

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