US sanctions Russian-Israeli billionaire Mikhail Fridman, 3 others

‘Wealthy Russian elites should disabuse themselves of notion they can operate business as usual,’ deputy treasury secretary says

WASHINGTON — The US Treasury Department on Friday imposed financial sanctions against four Russians on the board of Alfa Group, one of Russia’s largest conglomerates with interests in oil, natural gas and banking.

The sanctions are part of continuing efforts to place restrictions on the economy of Russia and its wealthiest powerbrokers, a response to its invasion last year of Ukraine and the ensuing war. Sanctioned by Treasury are Petr Olegovich Aven, Mikhail Maratovich Fridman, German Borisovich Khan and Alexey Viktorovich Kuzmichev.

Fridman is a dual Russian-Israeli citizen.

“Wealthy Russian elites should disabuse themselves of the notion that they can operate business as usual while the Kremlin wages war against the Ukrainian people,” said Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo. “Our international coalition will continue to hold accountable those enabling the unjustified and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.”

Born into a Jewish family in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv in 1964, Fridman studied in Moscow and went on to build a vast business empire encompassing everything from oil and gas to banking, telecoms and distribution. He is best known as a founder of Alfa Bank, the largest private financial institution in Russia.

Fridman is a founder of Alfa Group and ranked as one of Russia’s wealthiest tycoons. The group’s Alfa Bank, Russia’s largest nonstate bank, was sanctioned by the EU in March 2022 and Fridman left the board thereafter to try to help the bank skirt sanctions. Aven headed Alfa-Bank until March 2022, but like Fridman left the board after EU sanctions.

The sanctions against the individuals would block access to their US properties and financial interests.

In December British authorities arrested a Russian businessman suspected of money laundering, conspiracy to defraud the Home Office and conspiracy to commit perjury.

Russian state media identified him as Fridman, but this has not been confirmed. He and two others connected to the case were later freed on bail after being questioned.

Although Fridman has cultivated strong ties to Putin’s administration, he has never become part of the president’s inner circle. A day after the invasion, he spoke out against the bloodshed in Ukraine, calling it a “tragedy” for both sides.

Fridman has provided backing for Jewish causes and was a cofounder of the Genesis Philanthropy Group, which gives out an annual award dubbed the “Jewish Nobel.” He and two other sanctioned Russian billionaires resigned from the group’s board last year due to sanctions.

Agencies contributed to this report.