PwC helps Russia’s ‘richest’ oligarch to transfer assets after Ukraine invasion sanctions

One of the world’s major accounting firms, PwC, reportedly assisted Russia’s wealthiest oligarch, Alexei Mordashov, in transferring hundreds of millions in assets as European Union (EU) sanctions loomed following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to documents leaked to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and Paper Trail Media. The leaked documents, known as Cyprus Confidential, indicate PwC Cyprus’s involvement in managing transactions as Russian forces launched the invasion in February 2022.

The cache of 3.6 million files, considered the largest-ever financial data leak from Cyprus, exposes PwC Cyprus’s work for Mordashov, raising concerns about potential sanctions breaches. The files reportedly include emails of PwC Cyprus staff discussing the transfer of approximately one-third of the shares in Tui, Europe’s largest travel company, to Mordashov’s life partner. PwC Cyprus and other advisers are also alleged to have assisted another powerful Russian oligarch in attempting to transfer $1.2 billion in a public company on the day he faced EU sanctions.

The leaked documents further reveal undisclosed payments of $652,629 from companies linked to the same oligarch to a prominent German journalist, an expert on Russia, to support the publication of two books about President Vladimir Putin.

Since the imposition of extensive sanctions against Moscow and its business elite due to the Ukraine conflict, the focus has shifted to enforcing those restrictions. The leak exposes Cyprus’s role as a gateway into Europe for Kremlin-connected elites, with a significant portion of Russian billions identified by Forbes appearing alongside family members as clients of the island’s professional service providers.

In response to the leak, the Cypriot government has pledged a “zero-tolerance approach” to sanctions violations, receiving technical support from the British government to establish a sanctions implementation unit next year. Cyprus has also joined an EU cross-border project to enhance the effectiveness of sanctions.

Amidst scrutiny of the rules around the timeline and enforcement of sanctions against Russian officials and oligarchs, Cyprus’s finance ministry has initiated a criminal investigation into the transfer of Mordashov’s stake in Tui. Both Mordashov and PwC claim to be unaware of the criminal investigation.