viktor vekselberg yacht tango

Justice Department is seizing $75 million in real estate tied to Russian oligarch 

The Justice Department’s “Operation KleptoCapture” is seeking to seize luxury real-estate in Miami, the Hamptons and New York City, worth roughly $75 million and belonging to Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg, court documents show. 

NBC News was the first to report the raid of Vekselberg’s properties in September of last year. Those searches by the Justice Department and Homeland Security Investigations, in part, led to Friday's seizure filings. 

Prosecutors allege that Vekselberg’s business associate Vladimir Voronchenko, a fugitive who was indicted this month, violated sanctions and was involved in international money laundering. After Vekselberg was sanctioned in 2018, Voronchenko tried to sell properties in Park Avenue and Southampton without obtaining proper U.S. approval in violation of sanctions laws, prosecutors said.

Voronchenko was served with a grand jury subpoena in May of last year on Fisher Island, and, according to prosecutors, later that month he took a flight from Miami to Dubai and ultimately Moscow — approximately 9 days after receiving the subpoena. He remains a fugitive to this day, prosecutors said. 

The addresses identified in court documents are 19 Duck Pond Lane, Southampton, New York; 515 Park Avenue, Units 21 and 2I, New York, New York; 7002 Fisher Island Drive, Unit 7002 PH2, Miami Beach, Florida; and 7183 Fisher Island Drive, Units 7182 and 7183, Miami Beach, Florida.

These properties owned by Vekselberg are in addition to the $90 million 255-foot yacht, called the Tango, which Justice Department said is owned by Vekselberg and had already been seized by Spanish authorities on behalf of the U.S.

Vekselberg is well known to U.S. law enforcement and in Washington political circles.

A U.S. official with expertise in oligarchs said Vekselberg had an established model for seeking influence — identify areas of potential investment, provide funds to his proxies, and then let those proxies find “avenues” to move money to get the deals done — which could mean contributions or payments to individuals as needed.

A company controlled by Vekselberg made $500,000 in payments to former Trump attorney and convicted felon Michael Cohen, Stormy Daniels’ attorney Michael Avenatti said in 2018. Avenatti said the payments came from a U.S.-based company called Columbus Nova, which he said was controlled by Vekselberg and Vekselberg’s cousin Andrew Intrater.

The payments allegedly went to Cohen’s company, Essential Consultants, which was the same company that Cohen used to wire Daniels $130,000 to stop her from going public with her account of an alleged sexual affair with President Donald Trump over a decade ago.

In 2018, Andrey Shtorkh , a spokesman for Vekselberg, told NBC News that neither Vekselberg nor his business, Renova Group, had ever "had any contractual relationship with Mr. Cohen or Essential Consultants.”

He added, “As to a relationship between Columbus Nova and Mr. Cohen you have to ask Mr. Andy Intrater, because Columbus Nova is a company owned and managed by him.”

After publication a representative for Intrater contacted NBC News to say that his company Columbus Nova is American owned and is not and never has been controlled by Vekselberg.

More recently Intrater’s contributions toward George Santos’ campaign have come under scrutiny, including about $23,700 in publicly listed FEC campaign donations in 2022 to Santos’ campaign or related PACs. In 2021, he donated $5,800 to Santos’ campaign as well. 

Recent calls to Intrater have not been returned. 

Vekselberg, like many of his fellow oligarchs, got his start in Russia’s rapid and flawed move from communism to capitalism in the 1990s. After serving as an engineer in a state-owned pump manufacturer, he made the leap into private enterprise. Through a set of influential contacts, he was able to buy state assets on the cheap and wound up a billionaire with a big chunk of the world’s largest aluminum company and one of the world’s largest oil and gas firms.

His partners were often oligarchs like Oleg Deripaska, a billionaire linked by U.S. law enforcement to Russian organized crime, but according to U.S. officials, Vekselberg kept out of the seamiest precincts of Russia’s economic life.

Michael McFaul, a former U.S. ambassador to Russia, once said of Vekselberg: “I would never describe him as being in the inner circle. He didn’t make his money under Putin. He made his money in the 1990s. But everyone has to make compromises. In fact, he has a complicated relationship with the Kremlin.”

Tom Winter is a New York-based correspondent covering crime, courts, terrorism and financial fraud on the East Coast for the NBC News Investigative Unit.

Jonathan Dienst is chief justice contributor for NBC News and chief investigative reporter for WNBC-TV in New York.

U.S. charges two men with facilitating sanctions evasion of Russian oligarch's yacht

Get weekly news and analysis on the U.S. elections and how it matters to the world with the newsletter On the Campaign Trail. Sign up here.

Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Leslie Adler and David Gregorio

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. , opens new tab

Thomson Reuters

Kanishka Singh is a breaking news reporter for Reuters in Washington DC, who primarily covers US politics and national affairs in his current role. His past breaking news coverage has spanned across a range of topics like the Black Lives Matter movement; the US elections; the 2021 Capitol riots and their follow up probes; the Brexit deal; US-China trade tensions; the NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan; the COVID-19 pandemic; and a 2019 Supreme Court verdict on a religious dispute site in his native India.

No charges to be filed in death of Oklahoma nonbinary teen

Prosecutors on Thursday announced that no criminal charges would be filed in the death of nonbinary Oklahoma teenager Nex Benedict, who died one day after a fight at school that may have followed bullying due to Benedict's gender identity.

US Seizes Super Yacht ‘Tango' Owned by Oligarch With Close Ties to Putin From Spanish Port

The doj alleges in a warrant the yacht should be forfeited because billionaire viktor vekselberg violated u.s. bank fraud, money laundering and sanctions statutes, by francisco ubilla, aritz parra and michael balsamo • published april 4, 2022.

The U.S. government on Monday seized a 254-foot yacht in Spain owned by an oligarch with close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, a first by the Biden administration under sanctions imposed after the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine and targeting pricey assets of Russian elites.

Spain's Civil Guard and U.S. federal agents descended on the Tango at the Marina Real in the port of Palma de Mallorca, the capital of Spain’s Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. Associated Press reporters at the scene saw police going in and out of the boat.

The U.S. Justice Department, which obtained a warrant from a federal judge in Washington, alleges the yacht should be forfeited for violating U.S. bank fraud, money laundering and sanctions statutes.

Superyachtfan.com , a specialized website that tracks the world’s largest and most exclusive recreational boats, values the 78-meter vessel, which carries the Cook Islands flag, at $120 million.

Get Boston local news, weather forecasts, lifestyle and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Boston’s newsletters.

‘Under the Counter Diplomacy': Why Sanctioned Oligarch Roman Abramovich Is Brokering Peace in Ukraine

Turkey May Become the New Playground for Russian Oligarchs — But It's a Risky Strategy

The yacht is among the assets linked to Viktor Vekselberg, a billionaire and close Putin ally who heads the Moscow-based Renova Group, a conglomerate encompassing metals, mining, tech and other assets, according to U.S. Treasury Department documents .

All of Vekselberg’s assets in the United States are frozen and American companies are barred from doing business with him and his entities. The Ukrainian-born businessman built his fortune by investing in the aluminum and oil industries in the post-Soviet era.

Prosecutors allege Vekselberg bought the Tango in 2011 and has owned it since then, though they believe he has used shell companies to try to obfuscate his ownership and to avoid financial oversight.

They contend Vekselberg and those working for him continued to make payments using U.S. banks to support and maintain the yacht, even after sanctions were imposed on him in 2018. Those payments included a stay in December 2020 at a luxury water villa resort in the Maldives and fees to moor the yacht.

It's the first U.S. seizure of an oligarch’s yacht since U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen assembled a task force known as REPO — short for Russian Elites, Proxies and Oligarchs — as an effort to enforce sanctions after Russia invaded Ukraine in late February.

"It will not be the last,” Garland said in a statement. “Together, with our international partners, we will do everything possible to hold accountable any individual whose criminal acts enable the Russian government to continue its unjust war.”

Vekselberg has long had ties to the U.S., including a green card he once held and homes in New York and Connecticut. He was also questioned in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and has worked closely with his American cousin, Andrew Intrater, who heads the New York investment management firm Columbus Nova.

Vekselberg and Intrater were thrust into the spotlight in that investigation after the lawyer for adult film star Stormy Daniels released a memo that claimed $500,000 in hush money was routed through Columbus Nova to a shell company set up by Donald Trump's personal attorney, Michael Cohen. Columbus Nova denied that Vekselberg played any role in its payments to Cohen.

Vekselberg and Intrater met with Cohen at Trump Tower, one of several meetings between members of Trump's inner circle and high-level Russians during Trump's 2016 campaign and the transition before his presidency.

The 64-year-old Vekselberg founded Renova Group more than three decades ago. The group holds the largest stake in United Co. Rusal, Russia’s biggest aluminum producer, among other investments.

Vekselberg was first sanctioned by the U.S. in 2018, and again in March of this year, shortly after the invasion of Ukraine began. Vekselberg has also been sanctioned by authorities in the United Kingdom.

The yacht sails under the Cook Islands flag and is owned by a company registered in the British Virgin Islands administered by different societies in Panama, the Civil Guard said, “following a complicated financial and societal web to conceal its truthful ownership.”

Agents confiscated documents and computers inside the yacht that will be analyzed to confirm he real identity of the owner, it said.

The U.S. Justice Department has also launched a sanctions enforcement task force known as KleptoCapture, which also aims to enforce financial restrictions in the U.S. imposed on Russia and its billionaires, working with the FBI, the U.S. Treasury and other federal agencies. That task force will also target financial institutions and entities that have helped oligarchs move money to dodge sanctions.

The White House has said that many allied countries, including Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy and others are involved in trying to collect and share information against Russians targeted for sanctions. In his State of the Union address on March 1, President Joe Biden warned oligarchs that the U.S. and European allies would “find and seize your yachts, your luxury apartments, your private jets.”

“We are coming for your ill-begotten gains,” he said.

Monday's capture is not the first time Spanish authorities have been involved in the seizure of a Russian oligarch’s superyacht. Officials said they had seized a vessel valued at over $140 million owned by the CEO of a state-owned defense conglomerate and a close Putin ally.

French authorities have seized superyachts, including one believed to belong to Igor Sechin, a Putin ally who runs Russian oil giant Rosneft, which has been on the U.S. sanctions list since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

Italy has seized several yachts and other assets.

Italian financial police moved quickly seizing the superyacht Lena belonging to Gennady Timchenko, an oligarch close to Putin, in the port of San Remo; the 65-meter (215-foot) Lady M owned by Alexei Mordashov in nearby Imperia, featuring six suites and estimated to be worth 65 million euros; as well as villas in Tuscany and Como, according to government officials.

Parra reported from Madrid and Balsamo reported from Washington.

This article tagged under:

Watch CBS News

U.S. seizes mega yacht owned by oligarch who's close to Putin

By Robert Legare

Updated on: April 5, 2022 / 9:24 AM EDT / CBS News

Washington  — American and Spanish law enforcement agents took control of the mega yacht Tango anchored in the luxurious Spanish island of Palma de Mallorca on Monday after the U.S. Justice Department obtained a warrant for the $90-million vessel's seizure.

The warrant and subsequent raid targeted Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg, who was sanctioned by the U.S. government in 2018 and again last month following Russia's deadly invasion of Ukraine. The financial penalties blocked the billionaire from participating in the U.S. economy and prevented him from utilizing American banks to conduct business transactions. 

According to the Justice Department's warrant , dating as far back as 2011, Vekselberg and other unnamed conspirators attempted to avoid detection in the U.S. by paying for the yacht through shell companies and other money laundering techniques. 

"Vekselberg and those acting on his behalf and for his benefit caused U.S. dollar transactions for the Tango to be sent through U.S. financial institutions, after a time which Vekselberg was designated by the Treasury Department," the warrant unsealed Monday alleges.

The Tango, designed and built exclusively for the oligarch, who has an estimated net worth of $6 billion, had been sent to Spain for repair. Investigators say the Spanish government then alerted the Justice Department to its whereabouts on March 13. 

Prosecutors in Spain obtained a "freezing" order on the vessel, paving the way for FBI and other American law enforcement agents to seize the ship. 

Monday's operation was part of the Justice Department's new Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement group aimed at holding sanctioned Russian elites accountable, as Russia continues its aggressive invasion of Ukraine. 

"Today marks our task force's first seizure of an asset belonging to a sanctioned individual with close ties to the Russian regime. It will not be the last," Attorney General Merrick Garland said Monday. "Together, with our international partners, we will do everything possible to hold accountable any individual whose criminal acts enable the Russian government to continue its unjust war."

The Associated Press noted 64-year-old Vekselberg, who was born in Ukraine, has long had ties to the U.S., including a green card he once held and homes in New York and Connecticut. He's the main owner of the Renova Group, a global conglomerate he founded 30 years ago which is based in Moscow with major assets in mining, technology and utilities. He has stakes in several technology companies and in Rusal, Russia's biggest aluminum producer.

Vekselberg and his cousin, Andrew Intrater, were investigated by special counsel Robert Mueller after the attorney for adult film star Stormy Daniels released a memo that claimed $500,000 in hush money was routed through Columbus Nova, an investment company run by Intrater and reportedly affiliated with Renova , to a shell company set up by former President Donald Trump's personal attorney, Michael Cohen, according to the Associated Press. Columbus Nova denied that Vekselberg, who was Intrater's biggest investor, played any role in its payments to Cohen. Vekselberg and Intrater met with Cohen at Trump Tower, one of several meetings between members of Trump's inner circle and high-level Russians during the 2016 campaign and transition. Mueller did not mention Vekselberg or Intrater in his final report.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect that neither Vekselberg nor Intrater were mentioned in special counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, as well as to note some of Vekselberg's other holdings.  

Robert Legare is a CBS News multiplatform reporter and producer covering the Justice Department, federal courts and investigations. He was previously an associate producer for the "CBS Evening News with Norah O'Donnell."

More from CBS News

Russia launches huge missile attack on Kyiv for first time in 6 weeks

As Ukraine aid languishes, 15 lawmakers work on end run to approve funds

FBI director speaks on Laken Riley's death, threats to democracy, civil rights

Congressional leaders, White House reach agreement on funding package

The US justice official in charge of seizing Russian assets breaks down the capture of an oligarch's $90 million superyacht

• The US seized sanctioned Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg's $90 million yacht in Spain on April 4.
• Andrew Adams, director of the KleptoCapture inter-agency task force, broke down the seizure in a WaPo Q&A.
• The US was "in some ways lucky" the 255-foot vessel was moored in a Spanish port, he admitted.

On April 4, the US seized a $90 million superyacht which it said belonged to sanctioned Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg. It was the first yacht seized by the US under sanctions aimed at hurting wealthy Russians with links to Vladimir Putin.

Vekselberg, whose net worth Bloomberg puts at around $16.4 billion, is chairman of the metals, mining, and energy conglomerate Renova Group. He was sanctioned by the US in 2018 and again in March after Russia invaded Ukraine, with the Tango and his private aircraft designated as blocked property.

The 255-foot Tango was seized at the Marina Real in Palma De Mallorca, Spain, by Spain's Civil Guard and officials tied to KleptoCapture , a task force set up in early March by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) to seize the assets of sanctioned Russians.

In a live question and answer session with The Washington Post , Andrew Adams, director of KleptoCapture, detailed how and why his task force seized the vessel .

Making the case

The DOJ said Vekselberg bought Tango in 2011 but hid his ownership using shell companies to "avoid bank oversight into US dollar transactions related there." It said Vekselberg and people working on his behalf continued to make US dollar payments through US banks for the support and maintenance of the yacht, without obtaining the required license after he was sanctioned.

Related stories

Adams said: "After having developed probable cause to demonstrate that the yacht was, in fact, the proceeds of sanctions evasion, as well as an asset involved in money laundering transactions, the mechanics get even more complicated."

However, he said the US was "in some ways lucky that the vessel was sitting where it was," in a "friendly port" in Spain.

"The Spanish authorities have been for years particularly adept in the investigation and in asset seizures and freezing in the area of Russian organized crime," Adams said. "So, we knew that we had a good partner to work with in Spain."

Seizing the Tango

Adams said US officials had to obtain a domestic seizure warrant from a magistrate judge and have it effected in Spain. The DOJ said a Spanish prosecutor obtained a freezing order from a Spanish court following a request from the US, as part of a bilateral treaty for mutual legal assistance in criminal matters.

"Once we had the warrant in place, the efforts then become one to physically seize the boat" and execute a search warrant, Adams told The Post. Agents from the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations were on site to help with the search and the seizure, he said.

Adams said the US had to maintain the yacht and keep it in good order. He said that yachts can become forfeitable through criminal cases, "which remains a possibility in this instance."

"There will be more to come with respect to this yacht before the United States can fully and finally divest Mr Vekselberg of his interests yet," Adams said.

He added that he wasn't ruling out the possibility that some of the forfeiture from the yacht could be given to Ukraine.

Watch: Videos show dead bodies and a mass grave in Bucha, Ukraine

• Main content

Superyacht owned by oligarch with close ties to Putin seized by U.S.

Linked to billionaire viktor vekselberg, tango is a 78-metre vessel valued at $120m us.

Social Sharing

The U.S. government seized a mega yacht in Spain owned by an oligarch with close ties to the Russian president on Monday, the first in the government's sanctions enforcement initiative to "seize and freeze" giant boats and other pricey assets of Russian elites.

Spain's Civil Guard and U.S. federal agents descended on the yacht at the Marina Real in the port of Palma de Mallorca, the capital of Spain's Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. Associated Press reporters at the scene saw police going in and out of the boat on Monday morning.

A Civil Guard source told The Associated Press that the immobilized yacht was the Tango, a 78-metre vessel that carries a Cook Islands flag and that Superyachtfan.com, a specialized website that tracks the world's largest and most exclusive recreational boats, set its value at $120 million US.

The yacht is among the assets linked to Viktor Vekselberg, a billionaire and close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin who heads the Moscow-based Renova Group, a conglomerate encompassing metals, mining, tech and other assets, according to U.S. Treasury Department documents. All of Vekselberg's assets in the U.S. are frozen and U.S. companies are forbidden from doing business with him and his entities.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland confirmed the seizure in a statement released by the Justice Department, which estimated the value of the vessel as "at least $90 million."

"Today marks our task force's first seizure of an asset belonging to a sanctioned individual with close ties to the Russian regime. It will not be the last," said Garland. "Together, with our international partners, we will do everything possible to hold accountable any individual whose criminal acts enable the Russian government to continue its unjust war."

Vekselberg familiar to U.S. officials

Garland and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen have assembled a task force known as REPO — short for Russian Elites, Proxies and Oligarchs — as an effort to enforce sanctions after Russia invaded Ukraine in late February.

Vekselberg has long had ties to the U.S. including a green card he once held and homes in New York and Connecticut. The Ukrainian-born businessman built his fortune by investing in the aluminum and oil industries in the post-Soviet era.

Vekselberg was also questioned in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and has worked closely with his American cousin, Andrew Intrater, who heads the New York investment management firm Columbus Nova.

Vekselberg and Intrater were thrust into the spotlight in the Mueller probe after the lawyer for adult film star Stormy Daniels released a memo that claimed $500,000 US in hush money was routed through Columbus Nova to a shell company set up by Donald Trump's personal lawyer, Michael Cohen. Columbus Nova denied that Vekselberg played any role in its payments to Cohen.

Vekselberg and Intrater met with Cohen at Trump Tower, one of several meetings between members of Trump's inner circle and high-level Russians during the 2016 campaign and transition.

The 64-year-old mogul founded Renova Group more than three decades ago. The group holds the largest stake in United Co. Rusal, Russia's biggest aluminum producer, among other investments.

Vekselberg was first sanctioned by the U.S. in 2018, and again in March of this year, shortly after the invasion of Ukraine began. Vekselberg has also been sanctioned by authorities in the United Kingdom.

• Q&A How an ex-CIA agent is tracking the luxurious superyachts of Russian oligarchs
• Targeting super yachts owned by Russian oligarchs could hit a nerve in Moscow

The U.S. Justice Department has also launched a sanctions enforcement task force known as KleptoCapture, which also aims to enforce financial restrictions in the U.S. imposed on Russia and its billionaires, working with the FBI, Treasury and other federal agencies. That task force will also target financial institutions and entities that have helped oligarchs move money to dodge sanctions.

"Today's seizure of Viktor Vekselberg's yacht, the Tango, in Spain is the result of an unprecedented multinational effort to enforce U.S. sanctions targeting those elites who have enabled Russia's unprovoked and illegal invasion of Ukraine," said Andrew Adams, director of that task force. "For those who have tied their fortunes to a brutal and lawless regime, today's action is a message that those nations dedicated to the rule of law are equally dedicated to separating the oligarchs from their tainted luxuries."

The White House has said that many allied countries, including Germany, the U.K., France, Italy and others are involved in trying to collect and share information against Russians targeted for sanctions. In his State of the Union address, President Joe Biden warned oligarchs that, "we are coming for your ill-begotten gains."

Other yachts seized

Monday's capture is not the first time Spanish authorities have been involved in the seizure of a Russian oligarch's superyacht. Officials there said they had seized a vessel valued at over $140 million US owned by the CEO of a state-owned defence conglomerate and a close Putin ally.

French authorities have also seized superyachts, including one believed to belong to Igor Sechin, a Putin ally who runs Russian oil giant Rosneft, which has been on the U.S. sanctions list since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

$90 Million Yacht of Sanctioned Russian Oligarch Viktor Vekselberg Seized by Spain at Request of United States <a href="https://t.co/plLXnHXdoU">https://t.co/plLXnHXdoU</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/DOJPH?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DOJPH</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/FBIMinneapolis?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FBIMinneapolis</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/HSINewYork?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HSINewYork</a> &mdash; @USAO_DC

Italy has also seized several yachts and other assets.

Italian financial police moved quickly seizing the superyacht Lena belonging to Gennady Timchenko, an oligarch close to Putin, in the port of San Remo; the 65-metre Lady M owned by Alexei Mordashov in nearby Imperia, featuring six suites and estimated to be worth 65 million euros; as well as villas in Tuscany and Como, according to government officials.

News | World

€90m superyacht linked to Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg seized by US and Spain

The US has seized a mega yacht owned by an oligarch with close ties to Putin.

It is the first seizure from the US since Russia’s war on Ukraine began.

Spain's Civil Guard and the FBI descended on the €90m Euro (£75,372,000) yacht called ‘Tango’ in the port of Palma de Mallorca, the capital of Spain's Balearic Islands on Monday.

The 78-metre long vessel is linked to billionaire Viktor Vekselberg.

Vekselberg is a close ally of Putin who heads the Moscow-based Renova Group, a conglomerate encompassing metals, mining, tech and other assets.

The US Justice Department, which obtained a warrant from a federal judge in Washington, said the yacht should be forfeited for allegedly violating US bank fraud, money laundering and sanctions laws.

Vekselberg's assets are frozen in the US and US companies are forbidden from doing business with him and his entities. He was also placed under sanctions by the UK last month.

A Spanish Civil Guard spokesman confirmed officers from the Spanish police body and from the FBI were at the marina searching the vessel on Monday morning.

It comes after the US assembled a task force known as ‘Repo’ in an effort to enforce sanctions against oligarchs since the invasion of Ukraine.

“Today marks our task force's first seizure of an asset belonging to a sanctioned individual with close ties to the Russian regime. It will not be the last," US Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a video statement.

“Together with our international partners, we will do everything possible to hold accountable any individual whose criminal acts enable the Russian government to continue its unjust war.”

Vekselberg has long had ties to the US, including once holding a green card and homes in New York and Connecticut.

Sweden officially joins Nato ending decades of neutrality

Biden to announce temporary port for humanitarian aid on Gaza coast

Chinese resident in California arrested over alleged Google AI trade secrets theft

Celebrate Art of London’s collaborations with women artists

The Ukrainian-born businessman built his fortune by investing in the aluminium and oil industries in the post-Soviet era.

He was first sanctioned by the US in 2018 and again this March, shortly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine began.

President Joe Biden has previously warned oligarchs the US and its allies will "find and seize your yachts, your luxury apartments, your private jets".

He said: "We are coming for your ill-begotten gains."

It comes amid a string of yacht seizures from oligarchs around the world after Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

In France, the authorities have seized a superyacht believed to belong to Igor Sechin, a Putin ally who runs Russian oil giant Rosneft.

It has been on the US sanctions list since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. Italy has also seized several yachts and other assets.

The Stunning Ritz Carlton EVRIMA Yacht

Gliding Across Tokyo’s Sumida River: The Mesmerizing Zipper Boat

CROCUS Yacht: An 48 Meter Beauty by Admiral

PHI Yacht – Royal Huisman’s $45 Million Superyacht

• Zuretti Interior Design
• Zuretti Interior
• Zuccon International Project
• Ziyad al Manaseer
• Zaniz Interiors. Kutayba Alghanim
• Yuriy Kosiuk
• Yuri Milner
• Yersin Yacht

• Superyachts

TANGO Yacht – Immaculate $120 Million Superyacht

Fully custom with 1,730 HP diesel engines, it exudes power and luxury. It was built in the Netherlands by Feadship and was delivered to the owner in March 2011. 

She currently sails under the Cook Islands flag and docks at the Astilleros de Mallorca refit yard in Spain.   

TANGO yacht interior

The interior was designed by Harrison Eidsgaard, a London-based studio that’s passionate about creating unique designs tailored to the owner’s lifestyle. They also worked on notable yacht and aircraft projects. 

Accommodation for the guests is offered on the main deck. There’s a hall that leads to a private study and the owner’s stateroom with his/hers bath and dressing room. This custom-built superyacht also boasts a massage/beauty salon and custom furniture pieces. 

While the exact looks of the interior remain private, we know that its design elements are unparalleled.

Harrison Eidsgaard is known for their passion for detail while drawing inspiration from their varying backgrounds.   

Harrison Eidsgaard designed the exterior of the TANGO yacht. The steel hull, a teak deck, and an aluminum framework form a muscular yet elegant profile.

The top deck has grey/silver elements, creating a gentle contrast with the silver base. TANGO also features the signature Feadship signature lines, a symbol of style and performance.   

The contra-flow pool and a sundeck with an outdoor cinema are on the aft. There is comfortable seating, an impressive bar, a sky lounge, and al-fresco dining.    

Specifications

the TANGO yacht has a stunning length of 77.7m (254’11”) with a 12.2m (40’0″) beam. Her draft measures 3.65m (11’12”) and weighs 2083 tons.

With four diesel-type MTU engines, she can cruise up to a top speed of 21.0 knots.

She also carries 202 000 liters of fuel and 41,000 liters of water. As the 20th largest yacht built by Feadship, she can accommodate up to 14 guests and 22 crew members.   

Price 

As of today, the Feadship motor yacht Tango is not for sale. However, it has an estimated price of $120 million.    

Do you have anything to add to this listing?

• Harrisson Eidgaard

Love Yachts? Join us.

Related posts.

PANAKEIA Yacht – Opulence $15 M Superyacht

SEANNA Yacht – Exquisite Craftsmanship $60M Superyacht

NERO Yacht – Awesome $70 Superyacht

GENE MACHINE Yacht – Impressive $35M Superyacht

• Entertainment
• Sports Sports Betting Podcasts Better Planet Vault Mightier Autos Newsletters Unconventional Vantage Experts Voices
• Subscribe for $1
• Sports Betting
• Better Planet
• Newsletters
• Unconventional

Russian Oligarch Viktor Vekselberg's Mega-Yacht Seized in Spain by U.S.

U.S. federal agents and the Spanish Civil Guard on Monday seized a mega-yacht in Spain owned by Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg, who is closely associated with Russian President Vladimir Putin .

The yacht, named Tango , is a 254-foot vessel valued at an estimated $120 million. The vessel was located at the Marina Real in the port of Palma de Mallorca and was carrying a Cook Islands flag, according to the Associated Press.

Tango's seizure is just one of several yacht seizures affecting Russian billionaires as part of sanctions imposed by the West for Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Other Russian yachts have been seized by Spanish authorities. Since the start of the Ukraine conflict, Western nations have retaliated by freezing the personal assets of wealthy Russians and taking possession of their personal property.

"Today's action makes clear that corrupt Russian oligarchs cannot evade sanctions to live a life of luxury as innocent Ukrainians are suffering," said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco in a Department of Justice (DOJ) statement.

Authorities said Vekselberg bought Tango in 2011 and has used shell companies to avoid bank oversight of U.S. transactions. He was first sanctioned in 2018 and then this year after Russia's assault on Ukraine. He is under investigation for alleged bank fraud and money laundering and violation of sanction statutes, the DOJ said in a statement.

The vessel sailed under the Cook Islands flag and was owned by a company registered in the British Virgin Islands, but it was managed by different associations in Panama. Authorities took computers and documents from the yacht to confirm the owner's real identity, the Associated Press reported.

Spain's Civil Guard said Vekselberg was also under investigation for allegedly falsifying documents to hide who owned Tango, adding that there was a "complicated financial and societal web to conceal its truthful ownership," the AP reported.

The seizure was coordinated through the Justice Department's specialized task force, called KleptoCapture, which is dedicated to enforcing sanctions. The operation was conducted in coordination with the Spanish Civil Guard, the U.S. Homeland Security Department and the FBI .

"Today marks our taskforce's first seizure of an asset belonging to a sanctioned individual with close ties to the Russian regime. It will not be the last," said Attorney General Merrick Garland . "Together, with our international partners, we will do everything possible to hold accountable any individual whose criminal acts enable the Russian government to continue its unjust war."

On March 15, Spanish authorities seized a yacht named the Valerie belonging to Russian oligarch Sergei Chemezov. The vessel is 279 feet long and valued at over $140 million. Spain also seized a 440-foot-long yacht named Crescent , believed to belong to Igor Sechin, another oligarch.

Vekselberg is head of the Renova Group, a Moscow-based conglomerate that encompasses metals, mining, technology and other assets, according to U.S. Treasury Department documents. He made his wealth by investing in oil industries and aluminum. The Renova Group holds the largest stake in Russia's biggest aluminum producer, United Co. Rusal, according to the AP.

Newsweek reached out to Spain's Civil Guard for comment but did not hear back before publication.

Update 4/04/22, 11:25 a.m. ET: This story was updated with additional information and background.

• Russian Ambassador Blames Ukraine for Civilian Deaths in Bucha
• Russia 'Actively Withdrawing' From Ukraine's Sumy Region, Official Says
• Zelensky Calls Russian Army 'Concentrated Evil' After Bucha Massacre

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

About the writer

To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.

• Newsweek magazine delivered to your door
• Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
• Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
• Comment on articles
• Newsweek app updates on-the-go

Top stories

Letitia James Could Use Stormy Daniels to Help Pay Donald Trump's Judgment

Was America Safer Under Donald Trump Than Joe Biden?

AOC Challenges Ted Cruz on RICO Meaning

Donald Trump Owes Secret Service $584,000

• International edition
• Australia edition
• Europe edition

Briton arrested in Spain for allegedly helping Russian oligarch evade sanctions

Richard Masters, wanted by US, is charged over scheme involving superyacht Tango owned by Viktor Vekselberg

A British man who is wanted by the US authorities for allegedly helping a Russian oligarch evade sanctions relating to his $90m (£73m) superyacht has been arrested in Spain.

The Briton, named by the US Department of Justice as Richard Masters, 52, has been charged with facilitating a sanctions-evasion and money-laundering scheme involving Tango, a 255ft luxury yacht belonging to Viktor Vekselberg , a Russian oligarch under US sanctions who is an associate of Vladimir Putin.

Another businessman, Vladislav Osipov, 51, a Russian national, has also been charged in the US but remains at large.

Vekselberg, the founder of a Russian energy conglomerate, has been the target of US sanctions since 2018.

Spain’s Guardia Civil police force said a British national had been arrested at Madrid’s Barajas airport in a joint operation with the FBI and Homeland Security Investigation. The US had asked Spain to arrest Masters with a view to extraditing him.

“The arrested British citizen is the owner and administrator of a trading company based in Mallorca that offers maintenance and administrative services to boats,” the Guardia Civil said.

“Among his clients is a Russian citizen who has been prohibited from operating in US markets and with US financial businesses. The yacht in question was used by the aforementioned Russian citizen and his family.”

The force added that the suspect and his company are thought to have earned as much as €800,000 (£707,000) for looking after the oligarch’s yacht.

“After Vekselberg was sanctioned in April 2018, Masters’s company took over the management of Tango, and conspired with others to evade the US sanctions,” the US Department of Justice said in a statement.

“According to the indictment, among other things, Masters devised a scheme to use a false name for the yacht, ‘the Fanta’, in order to hide from financial institutions that payments in US dollars were ultimately for the benefit of Tango and Vekselberg.”

As a result, the statement added, US financial institutions processed “hundreds of thousands of dollars of transactions” relating to the Tango that would not have been permitted had they known of Vekselberg’s involvement.

Matthew Graves, the US attorney for the District of Columbia, where the charges were filed, said those trying to circumvent sanctions against the oligarchs who support the Putin regime were flouting US law.

after newsletter promotion

“The United States will not allow its financial institutions and persons to be manipulated or defrauded for the purposes of benefiting those supporting an illegal war,” he added.

Andrew Adams, the director of the Department of Justice’s department KleptoCapture taskforce, said Masters had to face the “consequences” of his actions.

“Corporations and executives have a choice,” he said. “They can participate in the global effort to uproot corruption, sanctions violations and money laundering, and enjoy the benefits of prompt and fulsome cooperation; or they can, as Osipov and Masters are alleged to have done, attempt to shield themselves and their clients behind a veil of fraud.”

Adams added: “These men made their decisions, and now face the consequences of a failed attempt to profit through, rather than standing against, a sophisticated, transnational criminal enterprise.”

• International trade

More on this story

Roman Abramovich business associate loses appeal against UK sanctions

Germany to propose new sanctions against Russia after death of Alexei Navalny

French police detain Russian tycoon over alleged financial and sanctions violations

Virgin Media O2 to snap up Russian oligarch-backed broadband firm

Abramovich ally Eugene Shvidler fails in attempt to overturn UK sanctions

UK imposes sanctions on Russian judges for sentencing of Putin opponent

Abramovich ally begins high court challenge against UK sanctions

Sanctions regime put to legal test in UK as oligarch seeks release of assets

Unilever named ‘international sponsor of war’ by Ukraine

UK to change sanctions rules in move towards seizing Russian assets

Most viewed.

How monogrammed bathrobes led US to put a $1M bounty on Russian yacht manager’s head

You can’t cover up the truth — not even in a luxury robe.

The US government is offering a reward of up to $1 million for a businessman who allegedly helped a Russian oligarch’s yacht circumvent sanctions — until the scheme was revealed by an order for monogrammed bathrobes.

Swiss-based businessman Vladislav Osipov, 52, is wanted on charges including bank fraud, money laundering and conspiracy for his role as a high-level employee of billionaire Viktor Vekselberg, the Justice Department announced last month.

A few months after Vekselberg was sanctioned by the US government in April 2018, Osipov allegedly instructed a boat management firm in Spain to disguise his $90 million yacht, Tango, by referring to it as the Fanta, the federal indictment stated.

At Osipov’s instruction, yacht employees used the false name to buy thousands of dollars worth of goods and services that were processed by US companies and financial institutions that would otherwise have refused to do business with a sanctioned buyer, the document alleged.

In addition to navigation software, leather magazine holders and web services, the management company running the Tango shelled out over $180,000 to a US internet provider, the feds said.

But a smoking gun appeared on Sept. 3, 2020, with the purchase of $2,600 monogrammed luxury robes — that gave away the Fanta’s real name, Tango.

The company ordered a second set of robes the following year, which contained explicit instructions that the ship should be referred to as Fanta on the invoice, even though the robes themselves bore a different name, the indictment read.

The Tango was seized in the Mediterranean by the FBI and Spanish authorities shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the Washington Post reported.

Osipov was initially indicted last year, documents showed. The owner of the Spanish management company, Richard Masters, was charged with conspiracy to defraud the US and violating federal sanctions, the Washington Post added .

As of late February, the Justice Department is offering up to $1 million for information leading to Osipov’s arrest.

The Swiss-based former Russian citizen may be in Herrliberg, Switzerland; Majorca, Spain; or Moscow, the feds warned.

The charges against Osipov are indicative of the government’s increased interest in expanding the reach of sanctions against Russian interests by targeting Western associates, the Washington Post suggested.

Just last month, the Justice Department announced charges against two stateside “facilitators” who supposedly helped Russian bank head Andrey Kostin conceal his ownership of a $12 million Aspen, Colo., property, the outlet noted.

The threat of criminal charges, the Washington Post said, is more concerning to Russians living and working in the West than the slew of Treasury Department sanctions.

“What you have seen through today’s public announcements are our efforts at really targeting the facilitators who possess the requisite skill set, access, connections that allow the Russian war machine [and] the Russian elites to continually have access to Western services and Western goods,” David Lim, co-director of the Justice Department’s KleptoCapture task force, said last month.

“It seems to me they have gone through a comprehensive list of the oligarchs, and you can debate whether or not it’s had a meaningful impact on the Russian war effort,” Thad McBride, an international trade partner at the law firm Bass Berry & Sims, told the Washington Post.

“Because they’re getting smarter about who’s who, they’re finding other people who play meaningful roles in these transactions, even though they’re not showing up in the headlines.”

Vekselberg, 66, has previously complained that he is unfairly targeted by US sanctions simply because he is Russian, wealthy, and connected with President Vladimir Putin, the newspaper said.

According to the documents, Osipov also helped Vekselberg use the shadow entities to circumvent the Treasury Department’s 50 percent ownership rule, which makes it illegal to do business with a firm if the sanctioned owner controls over 50 percent of the company.

Osipov’s attorney, Barry J. Pollack, argued that the Tango was not more than 50% owned by Vekselberg, and that the government’s application of the federal sanctions in this case was “unconstitutional.”

“The government points to no precedent that supports its extraordinary interpretation and cites no authority that allows the traditional rules of statutory construction to be turned on their head,” Pollack wrote in the opposition filing.

Pollack also insisted that his client is not a fugitive because he never engaged in illegal activity on US soil and never lived there.

Pollack did not immediately return The Post’s request for a comment.

An official website of the United States government

Here's how you know

Official websites use .gov A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock ( Lock A locked padlock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

• The Attorney General
• Organizational Chart
• Budget & Performance
• Privacy Program
• Press Releases
• Photo Galleries
• Guidance Documents
• Publications
• Information for Victims in Large Cases
• Justice Manual
• Business and Contracts
• Why Justice ?
• DOJ Vacancies
• Legal Careers at DOJ

$90 Million Yacht of Sanctioned Russian Oligarch Viktor Vekselberg Seized by Spain at Request of United States

            WASHINGTON – Spanish law enforcement today executed a Spanish court order freezing the Motor Yacht (M/Y) Tango (the Tango), a 255-foot luxury yacht owned by sanctioned Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg. Spanish authorities acted pursuant to a request from the U.S. Department of Justice for assistance following the issuance of a seizure warrant, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, which alleged that the Tango was subject to forfeiture based on violation of U.S. bank fraud, money laundering, and sanction statutes.

            According to documents filed in this case, the U.S. investigation alleges that Vekselberg bought the Tango in 2011 and has owned it continuously since that time. It further alleges that Vekselberg used shell companies to obfuscate his interest in the Tango to avoid bank oversight into U.S. dollar transactions related thereto. Additionally, after Vekselberg was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department on April 6, 2018, the warrant alleges that Vekselberg and those working on his behalf continued to make U.S. dollar payments through U.S. banks for the support and maintenance of the Tango and its owners, including a payment for a December 2020 stay at a luxury water villa resort in the Maldives and mooring fees for the yacht. Vekselberg had an interest in these payments and therefore a license was required from the Treasury Department, which was not obtained.

            “Today marks our taskforce’s first seizure of an asset belonging to a sanctioned individual with close ties to the Russian regime. It will not be the last.” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Together, with our international partners, we will do everything possible to hold accountable any individual whose criminal acts enable the Russian government to continue its unjust war.”

            “Today’s action makes clear that corrupt Russian oligarchs cannot evade sanctions to live a life of luxury as innocent Ukrainians are suffering,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “Today the Department of Justice delivers on our commitment to hold accountable those whose criminal activity strengthens the Russian government as it continues to wage its unjust war in Ukraine. That commitment is one we are not finished honoring.”

            “Today we announce another example of the FBI using our worldwide presence and partnerships, as well as our expertise and experience to track and seize illicit money and assets, to counter threats to our safety and national security,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “We will continue to use every lawful tool to go after designated Russian oligarchs' assets – however and wherever they hide them.”

            The seizure was coordinated through the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export restrictions, and economic countermeasures that the United States has imposed, along with its allies and partners, in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2 and run out of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will leverage all the Department’s tools and authorities against efforts to evade or undermine the economic actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.

            "The seizure of this luxury yacht demonstrates our determination to hold accountable those who support Vladimir Putin’s unwarranted invasion of another sovereign nation,” said U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves of the District of Columbia.  “We will continue to use every tool to enforce the sanctions aimed at Putin’s regime and the oligarchs who support it.  Working with our federal and international partners, we will be unflagging in our efforts to bring to justice those who violate these sanctions, and to seize assets where appropriate and lawful.”

            “Today’s seizure of Viktor Vekselberg’s yacht, the Tango, in Spain is the result of an unprecedented multinational effort to enforce U.S. sanctions targeting those elites who have enabled Russia’s unprovoked and illegal invasion of Ukraine,” said Director Andrew Adams of Task Force KleptoCapture. “For those who have tied their fortunes to a brutal and lawless regime, today’s action is a message that those nations dedicated to the rule of law are equally dedicated to separating the oligarchs from their tainted luxuries. This seizure is only the beginning of the Task Force’s work in this global effort to punish those who have and continue to support tyranny for financial gain.”

            “The FBI will continue to work with its partners to protect the integrity of the banking system and support the enforcement of sanctions programs,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael F. Paul of the FBI’s Minneapolis Field Office. “FBI agents and analysts, regardless of where they are assigned around the world, will work tirelessly to ensure those who attempt to evade sanctions are held accountable.”

            “The Russian invasion of Ukraine was an unprovoked act of aggression that has targeted the lives and well-being of millions of people and threatened international security,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New York.  “For decades, the Putin regime has been supported by a group of Russian oligarchs that abused their power for private gain to amass untold riches. As DHS’s investigative arm, HSI stands at the forefront of combatting global networks that seek to violate U.S. law and exploit our nation’s financial systems.  Working with our partners at the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI, we will hold Putin’s oligarchs accountable and deny them the lavish lifestyles they cherish.”

            Upon receipt of a request from the United States pursuant to a bi-lateral treaty for mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, the Spanish central authority for mutual legal assistance forwarded the request to a Spanish prosecutor, who obtained a freezing order from a Spanish court. The order was executed by Spain’s Guardia Civil, Spanish National Police, today, April 4.

            The Tango, International Maritime Organization number 1010703, is believed to be worth approximately $90 million or more. The yacht is now in Palma de Mallorca.

            The burden to prove forfeitability in a forfeiture proceeding is upon the government.

            Separately, seizure warrants obtained in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia target approximately $625,000 associated with sanctioned parties held at nine U.S. financial institutions. Those seizures are based on sanctions violations by several Russian specially designated nationals.

            The matter of the Tango is being investigated by the FBI’s Minneapolis Field Office with assistance from the HSI New York Field Office. In announcing that forfeiture action, U.S. Attorney Graves, Special Agent in Charge Paul, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Patel commended the work of those who investigated the case from FBI and HSI.

            Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen P. Seifert is handling the seizure and investigation, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Brian Rickers and Legal Assistant Jessica McCormick, all from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance in working with the Spanish authorities, as well as the Criminal Division's Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section (MLARS).

Related Content

            WASHINGTON – A superseding indictment, unsealed today, charges Vladislav Osipov, 52, a Russian national who resides in Switzerland, with five counts of bank fraud, in addition to charges previously...

A civil forfeiture complaint was unsealed today in the District of Columbia, alleging that more than 500,000 barrels of Iranian fuel oil valued at over $25 million previously onboard the...

UK Edition Change

• UK Politics
• News Videos
• Paris 2024 Olympics
• Rugby Union
• Sport Videos
• John Rentoul
• Mary Dejevsky
• Andrew Grice
• Sean O’Grady
• Photography
• Theatre & Dance
• Culture Videos
• Food & Drink
• Health & Families
• Royal Family
• Electric Vehicles
• Lifestyle Videos
• UK Hotel Reviews
• News & Advice
• Simon Calder
• Australia & New Zealand
• South America
• C. America & Caribbean
• Middle East
• Politics Explained
• News Analysis
• Today’s Edition
• Home & Garden
• Fashion & Beauty
• Travel & Outdoors
• Sports & Fitness
• Sustainable Living
• Climate Videos
• Behind The Headlines
• On The Ground
• Decomplicated
• You Ask The Questions
• Binge Watch
• Travel Smart
• Watch on your TV
• Crosswords & Puzzles
• Most Commented
• Newsletters
• Ask Me Anything
• Virtual Events
• Betting Sites
• Online Casinos
• Wine Offers

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in Please refresh your browser to be logged in

The A-Z of oligarchs

Just 15 years ago, there wasn't a single millionaire in russia. now it's home to a breed of wheeling-dealing tycoons who measure their wealth in billions - and know how to flaunt it. but who are they how have they built up such unimaginable fortunes in so little time and can the world's luxury yacht-makers keep up with demand from abramovich to zingarevich, andrew osborn lifts the gold-plated lid on the masters of the post-soviet universe, article bookmarked.

Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails

Sign up to our free breaking news emails, thanks for signing up to the breaking news email.

A IS FOR ABRAMOVICH

The undisputed oligarch of oligarchs. With an estimated £9.8bn to his name, Roman Abramovich, the 39-year-old owner of Chelsea Football Club, is Russia's richest citizen. He spends much of his time in London, where he owns a town house in Belgravia, a flat in Knightsbridge and a country estate in Sussex. The reclusive billionaire is married with five children and visits Russia several times a year to perform his duties as one of its regional governors. Though Abramovich is said to be on good terms with President Vladimir Putin, many ordinary Russians resent the fact that he spends so much of his money and time in the UK. He made his billions in the anarchic 1990s, when much of Russia's industry was sold off to a canny few for a fraction of its real value. In his case, he managed to get his hands on major oil and aluminium interests. Last year he sold the crown jewel in his empire - the Sibneft oil company - to the Kremlin-controlled Gazprom for £7bn, the biggest transaction in Russian corporate history. He owns three superyachts and a private jet.

B IS FOR BEREZOVSKY

One of the Russian oligarchy's most colourful and political characters. With an estimated £540m in his back pocket, 60-year-old Boris Berezovsky is a former maths professor who used his powers of logic to get rich. Afraid of being jailed by the Kremlin, Berezovsky won political sanctuary in the UK, where he now lives and is officially known as Platon Elenin by the Home Office. The Russian government regards him as a criminal and has unsuccessfully tried to have him extradited on fraud charges. Berezovsky insists the charges are false and politically motivated. A fierce critic of Vladimir Putin, he has dedicated himself to toppling the Russian President, financing anti-Kremlin activity (including Ukraine's Orange Revolution) across the former USSR. Berezovsky made his money in the 1990s by capitalising on his close contacts with the entourage of then President Boris Yeltsin. His connections saw him acquire lucrative stakes in the Russian oil, car and media industries, many of which he has since sold at enormous profit. Forbes estimates he is Russia's 43rd-richest individual, and that most of his money is tied up in investment funds. He lives with his fourth wife in a palatial Surrey mansion and has six children from different marriages.

C IS FOR CHIGIRINSKY

Fifty-six-year-old Shalva Chigirinsky is one of the movers and shakers responsible for Moscow's dramatic metamorphosis from drab Soviet-era city into a cutting-edge metropolis. Worth an estimated £525m, he is one of the Russian capital's most successful property developers, and his firm ST Development has exclusive rights to redevelop some of the country's most prestigious sites - a task for which he has signed up British architect Sir Norman Foster. Chigirinsky has commissioned Foster to play a leading role in the resurrection of the city's oldest and most central district, adjacent to the Kremlin, where the hulking Soviet-era Rossiya Hotel currently stands. The oligarch is also paying Foster to design what will be Europe's tallest tower, to redevelop an entire island district in St Petersburg, and to create a huge entertainment complex in southern Moscow. According to Forbes, he is Russia's 47th-wealthiest individual and is married with two children. Some of his wealth comes from a London-listed oil company called Sibir Energy. Chigirinsky makes no secret of his dislike for Roman Abramovich, whom he accuses of having stolen half an oilfield belonging to Sibir. Abramovich denies the accusation.

D IS FOR DERIPASKA

Oleg Deripaska is the king of Russia's aluminium industry, a man whose name strikes fear into many of his competitors. With a fortune estimated at £4.8bn, he also has interests in the timber and car industries. Aged 38, Forbes says the success of the company he controls, Basic Element, makes him the country's sixth-richest individual. His competitors allege that he uses strong-arm tactics in hostile takeovers and is not easily dissuaded from backing down. In 2001 he married Polina Yumasheva, former President Boris Yeltsin's granddaughter, and has long enjoyed close relations with Russia's political élite. He and his wife have two children and a Grade-I listed Regency house in Belgravia that they are thought to have purchased for £25m. Deripaska spends a lot of time in Britain, where he has taken English lessons at the London School of Economics. He counts Roman Abramovich, a former business partner, among his friends, and has been known to turn up at Stamford Bridge on a Saturday to watch Chelsea play. He began his career in 1993 as a commodities trader.

E IS FOR EVTUSHENKOV

Vladimir Evtushenkov, 57, may not be a household name in the UK, but the Bill Gates lookalike should be. With an estimated £4.1bn to his name, Forbes says he is Russia's eighth-richest man. The source of his wealth is the sprawling telecoms-to-real-estate conglomerate that he controls called Sistema, which he helped set up in 1993. The company floated on the London Stock Exchange last year with a value of £4.3bn. Sistema includes some of the juiciest assets that once belonged to the state in Moscow - the Russian capital's fixed-line telephone network, its principal mobile phone operator MTS (which is now Eastern Europe's biggest), the iconic Children's World department store, thousands of square feet of prime office space and a big insurance company. Sistema also makes microchips and has a foothold in the biotech industry. Married with two children, Evtushenkov is regarded as one of the most erudite oligarchs, and has a doctorate in economics. Like mostoligarchs, he owns a private jet.

F IS FOR FRIDMAN

In his youth, Mikhail Fridman used to be a ticket tout. Now he is worth an estimated £5.6bn, and is Russia's fourth-richest man. His success is based on the banking-to-telecoms consortium Alfa Group. He founded it and is today one of the company's majority shareholders. He has come a long way since his student days in Moscow, when he made extra cash by selling theatre tickets and organising discos. His often-grinning face belies a tough business outlook, which he summed up in a TV interview in 2002. "Nobody is anyone's friend," he said. "Because to one degree or another we are all competitors." The 42-year-old businessman is married with two children and is currently being sued for slander in a London court by Boris Berezovsky. Fridman has traditionally enjoyed good relations with the Kremlin but suffered a setback earlier this year when his sprawling dacha (country house) was seized by the Russian government. A court said the dacha, formerly state property, had been illegally privatised and ruled that Fridman had to return it. The Alfa group has significant stakes in Russo-Anglo oil joint-venture TNK-BP, a large supermarket chain, and a number of mobile operators.

G IS FOR GUSINSKY

Vladimir Gusinsky, 53, used to be one of Russia's most powerful media magnates, but he lost almost everything and is now more minigarch than oligarch. Like several others on this list, his story shows how dependant oligarchs are on the Kremlin's goodwill. Gusinsky flourished under President Boris Yeltsin but saw his empire collapse when Vladimir Putin came to power. In the 1990s the flamboyant former theatre director appeared to have the Midas touch, founding Media Most, a company that included newspaper Segodnya, independent TV station NTV, and a banking and property empire. But NTV became a thorn in the Kremlin's side with its highly critical coverage of the war in Chechnya. In 2000 Gusinsky was accused of embezzlement and money laundering and was forced into exile. He denies wrongdoing to this day but resides in Israel. His fortune is estimated to have dwindled to £187m, a figure not high enough for him to make it into Russia's "Golden 100". He is married with three children.

H IS FOR KHAN

(Since there is no H in the Cyrillic alphabet.) Forty-four-year-old German Khan is estimated to have £3.6bn to his name, which makes him Russia's 12th-richest individual. Yet little is known about him and he is regarded as one of the most reclusive, low-profile oligarchs. A close friend and business partner of fellow oligarchs Mikhail Fridman and Viktor Vekselberg, with whom he holidays every year, he owns a major stake in telecoms and banking consortium Alfa Group. But his speciality is oil, and he is on the management board of Anglo-Russian oil joint venture TNK-BP, in which Alfa owns a 25 percent stake. Like Fridman, he was born in the 1960s in what was then Soviet Ukraine. In the 1980s he met Fridman and several other future oligarchs while studying at Moscow's Institute of Steel and Alloys, a twist of serendipity that was to make his fortune. He is married with two children.

I IS FOR IVANISHVILI

Boris Ivanishvili used to be known as "the man who nobody knew anything about", despite being worth an estimated £2.5bn. Like many oligarchs, he shied away from publicity and until 2005 there was only one photograph of him in the public domain. Today, more is known about Russia's 19th-richest individual, who is in fact of Georgian origin. Aged 50, and married with three children, the source of his wealth is metals and banking. Forbes' description of the secret of his success could apply to dozens of other oligarchs. "He bought firms that nobody needed for tens of millions of dollars and sold them for billions of dollars." He got his start in the 1980s selling computers, moved on to importing what was then a novelty in Russia, push-button phones, before moving into banking. As he grew more successful he bought run-down mines around the country that he was later to sell for big profits. He has now largely sold up and his money is in investment funds. He lives in a huge house cut out of a hillside in his native Georgia.

J IS FOR JORDAN & JENNINGS

Boris Jordan and Stephen Jennings are Russia's honorary oligarchs. They do not possess Russian passports but they helped the bona fide oligarchs accumulate their wealth in the anarchic post-Soviet 1990s, managing to make some serious money themselves along the way. In 1992 the two men were brought in by the Kremlin to organise the country's first privatisation auction, that of the Bolshevik Biscuit Factory in Moscow. Jordan is an American investment banker of Russian origin, Jennings a rugby-loving New Zealander. When the duo realised how cheaply Russia was going to sell off its crown jewels, Jordan, now 39, and Jennings, now 46, decided they wanted a slice of the action. The two made a fortune as stockbrokers in the Russian market, setting up investment bank Renaissance Capital in 1995. According to Forbes, both men would qualify for Russia's rich list were it not for the colour of their passports. Renaissance Capital, which Jennings now heads, is estimated to be worth around £800m, while Jordan is managing some £300m worth of investments through his Sputnik Investment Fund.

K IS FOR KHODORKOVSKY

Once Russia's richest man and its most powerful oligarch, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, 42, is now the country's most famous inmate. He was jailed for fraud and tax evasion last year. His supporters contend that he was imprisoned because of his growing interest in politics, and his opposition to President Putin. The Kremlin claims that he was a latter-day Al Capone who was involved in organised crime who had to be stopped.

When Forbes published its first Russian rich list in 2004, Khodorkovsky headed it with an estimated £8bn fortune, ahead of Roman Abramovich. That figure is now estimated to have dwindled to several hundred million pounds, and he does not feature on this year's rich list since he has been all but stripped of his assets.

Married (second time round) with four children, the original source of his wealth was oil, via the Yukos company that he built up during the 1990s. He is serving his eight-year prison sentence 3,100 miles east of Moscow in the remote Siberian penal colony of Yag 14/10, where his current existence bears little resemblance to the life he knew outside of prison. Khodorkovsky was recently attacked by a fellow inmate with a cobbler's knife.

L IS FOR LISIN

Vladimir Lisin, 50, used to work in a coal mine in Siberia. Now he is worth an estimated £6bn, heads one of Russia's largest steel-makers, enjoys shooting clay pigeons and chomping on Cohiba cigars, and is the country's third-wealthiest individual. Lisin sold a seven per cent stake in his steel giant Novolipetsk to investors on the London Stock Exchange last year. The sale raised over £325m, and he still has an 83 per cent stake in the world's fourth-largest steel-maker to fall back on. Married with three children, he has never dabbled in politics though he does pour some money into daily newspaper Gazeta. He worked his way up through the metals industry from the shop floor. In 1993 he became involved with Novolipetsk and steadily made it his own. While others were buying luxury cars or villas in France, he thought "it was time to buy up shares" in the metals sector, he told Kompaniya magazine. He keeps a low profile, but last year he was reported to have bought a sprawling Scottish hunting estate.

M IS FOR MORDASHOV

Nicknamed "the tank" because of his bear-like stature, Aleksei Mordashov is estimated to be worth £4.5bn. He is Russia's seventh-richest man according to Forbes and a traditional oligarch in so far as he is a steel magnate. He owns a large stake in steel giant Severstal, which was privatised in 1993. Like so many of the oligarchs, the 40-year-old Mordashov was in the right place at the right time. He was finance director of the Cherepovets steel mill north of Moscow and was asked by the elderly general director to buy up the company's shares to prevent them falling into the hands of an outsider. Mordashov snapped up a lot of the shares on the cheap for himself. In 1996 he became the firm's general director and later turned it into a powerful conglomerate, buying a car-maker, coal mines, railway companies and port facilities. Unusually for an oligarch, he has lamented the huge gulf between Russia's rich and poor. Married with three children, he is regarded as a Kremlin loyalist and as a staunch Vladimir Putin supporter.

N IS FOR NEVZLIN

Leonid Nevzlin, 46, must be one of the few billionaires who is also wanted for murder. Like his friend and long-time business associate Mikhail Khodorkovsky, he has incurred the Kremlin's wrath and now lives in Israel. He contends that the fraud and murder charges against him are fabricated, and is doing all he can to avoid extradition back to his homeland.

In 2004, the last time he appeared on Forbes' Russian rich list, he was estimated to be worth around £1bn. That figure is thought to be much lower today. Like Khodorkovsky, a large proportion of his wealth was tied up in the oil company Yukos, much of which has since been seized by the Kremlin.

Nevzlin is married with two children and began his ascent into the ranks of the super-rich one day in 1987 when he answered a job ad. He became a computer programmer working with Khodorkovsky and remained the famous oligarch's right-hand man until 2001. He helped to organise and fund the successful re-election campaign of Boris Yeltsin in 1996. Like Khodorkovsky, he has a penchant for dabbling in politics and is a fierce critic of Vladimir Putin.

O IS FOR OIF

Of all the oligarchs, Valery Oif, a close associate and friend of Roman Abramovich's, is the most mysterious. According to Forbes, he is worth around £500m, making him Russia's 52nd-wealthiest individual. Yet there is precious little information on him, apart from the fact that he is 42 years old and married with one son. This is all the more surprising given that he is a senator representing a Siberian constituency in Russia's Federation Council. By all accounts when he gets publicity he hates it - when his name was published on Forbes' first Russian rich list in 2004 he was reportedly "furious". The source of his wealth is oil - he had a senior management position and minority stake in Sibneft. Oif is a Muscovite and was friendly with Abramovich as a student when the two travelled round Russia with other friends. He was among those who set up a company with Abramovich making plastic toys, and he appears to have been one of his most important lieutenants ever since.

P IS FOR POTANIN

In the dying days of the USSR, Vladimir Potanin had just over £5,000 in his pocket, but he had a vision. Fifteen years later he is worth an estimated £4bn, and is ranked by Forbes as Russia's ninth-richest individual. The company he manages, Norilsk Nickel, is the world's largest producer of palladium and platinum. Potanin won control of Norilsk in the 1990s from the mine's Communist-era directors. It was he who in 1995 devised a controversial scheme whereby the government sold off state enterprises on the cheap in return for loans. Potanin has always been an insider. His father was a senior trade official in the USSR and he himself graduated from Moscow's élite Institute for International Relations. In 1996 he became the country's First Deputy Prime Minister under Yeltsin, the highest office ever held by an oligarch. He is 45, married with three children, and lives in an exclusive Moscow apartment complex with its own ski run. He is now building his own ski resort in southern Russia.

Q IS FOR KLEBNIKOV

There is no Q in the Cyrillic alphabet, but Paul Klebnikov's name will forever be associated with the oligarchs whose wealth he brought to global attention. Klebnikov, an American of Russian origin, was the editor of the Russian edition of Forbes, and it was he who in May 2004 published the country's first authoritative rich list telling the world exactly how wealthy Russia's super rich were, and what they spent their money on. Less than two months after the list hit the newsstands, Klebnikov was shot dead in a drive-by contract killing. He was 41 and married with three children. His killers have never been found, though the Russian authorities have tried to prove - so far unsuccessfully - that he was murdered by two Chechens acting on behalf of a Chechen warlord he had offended. Others believe that he may have been killed because of his exposure of the famously secretive oligarchs. When first released, the Forbes list caused anger among Russia's super-wealthy, who were worried the tax authorities and kidnappers would use it to target them.

R IS FOR RASHNIKOV

In 1967 Viktor Rashnikov was a humble fitter in a workshop in one of the Soviet Union's biggest steel plants. Nearly 40 years later, he chairs the company's board and has an estimated personal fortune of £2.9bn, making him Russia's 16th-wealthiest individual. The 57-year-old Rashnikov and a group of like-minded managers are thought to control 99 per cent of the shares in the iron and steel works in Magnitogorsk, Siberia. The mill is Russia's largest steel producer and one of the most glittering jewels in the country's industrial crown. The plant achieved legendary status during the Second World War when it churned out half of all Soviet tanks and ammunition. Little is known about Rashnikov except that he was born and bred in Magnitogorsk and still lives there. He enjoys the support of President Vladimir Putin, loves ice hockey, and is married with two children. He worked his way up from the workshop floor to become the plant's general director in 1997. Since then he has resisted hostile takeovers and blackmail to become one of the country's wealthier oligarchs.

S IS FOR SMOLENSKY

Nikolai Smolensky is the controversial 25-year-old known as "baby oligarch". In 2004 he bought iconic British sports car maker TVR for an estimated £15m, only to announce the plant's closure two years later with big job losses. Aleksander Smolensky, his father, is an oligarch of classic 1990s vintage who is no less controversial. The bank he once controlled - SBS-Agro - collapsed during Russia's financial crisis in 1998, leaving thousands of ordinary Russians without their life savings. Smolensky Sr last appeared on Forbes' rich list in 2004 when he was estimated to be worth £123m. The 51-year-old is married, and Nikolai is his only child. While many ordinary Russians were ruined by the 1998 crash, Aleksander Smolensky somehow bounced back and created a new bank that his son briefly chaired before it was sold on to another prominent oligarch for £110m. Smolensky Jr is an alumnus of British private schools and divides his time between his native Moscow and his adopted London. He is estimated to be worth about £50m.

T IS FOR TARIKO

Rustam Tariko is a vodka oligarch with a taste for fine art and an eye for beautiful women. The 44-year-old is thought to be worth just over £1bn, making him Russia's 31st-richest individual. The source of his wealth is Russian Standard - a vodka-to-banking empire that has rapidly become one of Russia's most successful companies. Tariko hit the headlines in early May when he was outed as the New York buyer of Pablo Picasso's Dora Maar with Cat. He paid almost £51m for the canvas. He was in London for the Russian Economic Forum earlier this year when he spoke on the theme of luxury as a Russian national idea. He should know. His dog, Dow Jones, wears a Louis Vuitton collar, goes on holiday with him to Sardinia, and has its own "nanny". Tariko is a bachelor, though he has two children from a previous relationship. He is an outgoing oligarch who can sometimes be spotted in some of Moscow's more prestigious bars, where he loves to people-watch. His company's name is taken from the first four letters of his forename - RUssian STandard.

U IS FOR USMANOV

Alisher Usmanov is known in business circles as "the hard man of Russia". Worth around £1.7bn, Usmanov has built up a metals and mining empire that has made him Russia's 25th-wealthiest man. In 2004 he bought into struggling Anglo-Dutch steel-maker Corus and waged an aggressive campaign to win a seat on the board, although he eventually backed off and sold his shares. He controls his affairs through a holding company called Metalloinvest and has admitted that his shares are his first love. The 52-year-old is married with two children.

V IS FOR VEKSELBERG

No matter how much wealth he accumulates, oil and metals magnate Viktor Vekselberg seems destined to always be known as "the bloke who bought those Fabergé eggs". In 2004 this most patriotic of oligarchs spent an estimated £50m to acquire the second-largest collection of Russian Fabergé Easter eggs in the world. His stated aim was altruistic - he wanted to bring them back to the motherland so that ordinary Russians could admire their own cultural legacy. With an estimated £5.4bn to his name, Vekselberg is Russia's fifth-richest individual. He was born in Ukraine and has a reputation for steering well clear of Kremlin politics. He started out in 1988 trading computers, before going into business with a former classmate who had emigrated to the US. In 1994 he led Russia's first hostile takeover, but oil is the main source of his fabulous wealth. He is a major shareholder in Anglo-Russian joint venture TNK-BP. He is famed for his relatively modest lifestyle, though he does, of course, own a private jet. He is married with two children.

W IS FOR WOMAN

Elena Baturina is the only female oligarch to have ever made it onto Forbes' Top 100 list, the quintessential badge of oligarchy. It is a status the 43-year-old has achieved with a little help from her powerful husband Yuri Luzhkov, the mayor of Moscow. According to Forbes, the blonde-bobbed Baturina is worth £1.3bn, making her Russia's richest woman and the country's 29th-wealthiest individual. The source of her fortune is a monolithic Moscow construction company called Inteko, which she owns. Her detractors allege that she has been able to cash in on Moscow's construction boom thanks to the patronage of her husband. The Moscow city government allots plots for construction, and Luzhkov has been the city mayor for the last 14 years. The powerful couple have two children.

X IS FOR ALEKPEROV

Oil tycoon Vagit Alekperov's surname does not begin with X, but as Russia's second-richest man he certainly has the X-factor. Forbes estimates he is worth £6.8bn, a fortune he has amassed by building up a huge stake in Russia's largest oil firm, LUKoil. His subordinates call him "The General" due to the enormous power he wields as LUKoil's president. The 55-year-old comes from oil-rich Azerbaijan, where his father worked in the Soviet oil industry and where he, too, cut his teeth. In the dying days of the USSR, Alekperov had the good fortune to be appointed First Deputy Minister of Fuel and Energy in Moscow. It was a position he used to lobby for the merger of three major Russian oil producers. That firm became LUKoil and he assumed its presidency. He is married with a son to whom he hopes to bequeath a large number of LUKoil shares.

Y IS FOR YAKOVLEV

The boss of the Russian Dixons and an oligarch who actually appears to have built up a business rather than "inherited" it, Igor Yakovlev is the owner of Russia's largest electronics retailer, Eldorado. The 40-year-old has made a fortune tapping into Russians' apparently unquenchable thirst for consumer durables. According to Forbes, Yakovlev is worth almost £520m and is Russia's 48th-wealthiest individual. He founded the business with his brother Oleg in 1994 and has created an empire encompassing 848 stores and twenty per cent of the electronics retail market. By the end of this year, Eldorado expects to have 1,000 stores in 600 Russian towns, as well as 85 stores in neighbouring Ukraine. Yakovlev's success has caught the attention of UK-based retailer Dixons, which last year took out an option to buy him out by 2011 for around £1bn. He is divorced with one son. His brother, Oleg, is apparently worth £176m, according to Forbes. He has founded a chain of hypermarkets selling goods for children called Banana-Mama, and a network of opticians.

Z IS FOR ZINGAREVICH

In the 1980s, Boris and Mikhail Zingarevich were poorly paid mechanics in bureaucracy-ridden Soviet-era pulp and paper mills. Today they have at least £352m (according to Forbes' 2004 estimate) between them and sit on the board of Russia's biggest forestry enterprise, the St Petersburg-based Ilim Pulp.

Like the Barclay brothers in the UK, they are intensely private. They are both 46 but it is not known whether they are twins or were merely born in the same year, or even whether they are married or have children. All that is known is that business-wise, Boris has been the more active. The duo founded Ilim Pulp in 1992 with one other partner after working their way up through the hierarchy of various pulp mills. Today Ilim is one of the world's biggest timber firms, and the brothers comprise half of the company's board. Other oligarchs have tried unsuccessfully to wrest control of the enterprise from them. In recent years the Zingarevich brothers have delegated day-to-day management to others so as to better enjoy the fruits of their success.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article

Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.

New to The Independent?

Or if you would prefer:

Want an ad-free experience?

Hi {{indy.fullName}}

• My Independent Premium
• Account details
• Help centre