Oligarch linked to billions in 27 Swiss bank accounts in sister’s name
Billions of pounds linked to the Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov and his business empire appear to have been held in secret Swiss accounts belonging to his family, an analysis of leaked documents suggests.
Usmanov’s 56-year-old sister, Saodat Narzieva, appears to have been the one-time beneficial owner of at least 27 secret corporate accounts at Credit Suisse, including one that held nearly 1.9bn Swiss francs (CHF) (£1.6bn). Usmanov is subject to EU sanctions.
Narzieva is a gynaecologist and obstetrician in a maternity hospital in Uzbekistan’s capital, Tashkent.
Her name is attached to Credit Suisse accounts that appear in the Suisse secrets project, a leak of data relating to 30,000 clients of the Swiss bank. It is not clear why her name would be linked to accounts associated with her brother’s business empire.
A spokesperson for Usmanov suggested the Credit Suisse data was “fake and incorrect” and there was nothing untoward about his financial relations with his sister, which were lawful and indicative of his “generosity”.
Information from numerous financial leaks, including Suisse secrets, the Panama papers and FinCEN Files, has allowed reporters at the Guardian to highlight the vast wealth linked to Usmanov.
The disclosures highlight the potential challenges western governments face when sanctioning or freezing the assets of oligarchs.
The Russian Asset Tracker project has included relatives and associates, because in some cases their wealth derives almost entirely from the person under sanctions. Including family gives a more complete picture of the scale of their fortunes and, in some cases, they may have been used to hide or disperse assets.
Last month, the US Treasury highlighted the problems of ownership by stating:
Read more on theguardian.com
