US sanctions London-based tycoons
The US government has extended its Russia-related sanctions over the Ukraine conflict, adding four prominent individuals and a business association to the list.
According to a document published on Friday by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, the new restrictions affect London-based billionaires Mikhail Fridman, Pyotr Aven, plus German Khan and Alexey Kuzmichev. In addition, the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) representative group has been targeted.
The four businessmen served on the supervisory board of the Alfa Group Consortium that runs Russia’s largest private lender, Alfa Bank, and were among the bank’s main major shareholders. One of Russia’s biggest financial and investment conglomerates, Alfa Group had already been targeted by Western sanctions.
In March, reports emerged that Fridman and Aven were preparing to offload their stakes in Alfa Bank in order to avoid further penalties.
All four had been previously sanctioned by Australia, Canada, the European Union, New Zealand and the UK. The latest measures against them will block access to their US properties and financial interests.
The Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, established in 1990, operates as a non-governmental organisation promoting the interests of Russia’s business community.
According to the US authorities, the association has helped Moscow counteract other Ukraine-related sanctions.
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