Money launderingTrillions of Dollars Laundered Through U.S., European Banks after Russian Sanctions

Published 21 September 2020

Documents leaked to BuzzFeed News show that in almost two decades, between 1999 to 2017, major European and U.S. financial entities processed more than $2 trillion worth of suspicious transactions. Kremlin insiders and friends were the beneficiaries. Three names stand out: Arkady Rotenberg, a childhood friend of Vladimir Putin who has gone from an obscure businessman in the 1990s to a billionaire during Putin’s 20 years in power, and who was sanctioned, along with his brother and son, after the Russian annexation of Crimea; Semion Mogilevich, a Russian organized crime boss who is named on the FBI’s top 10 most wanted list; and Paul Manafort, a political strategist who led Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential election campaign from early June until mid-August 2016.

Documents leaked to BuzzFeed News show that in almost two decades, between 1999 to 2017, European and U.S. financial entities processed more than $2 trillion worth of suspicious transactions. More than 2,100 Suspicious Activity Reports (SAR) filings with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCen), which BuzzFeed News shared with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), show major European and U.S. financial institutions involved, including HSBC Holdings Plc, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Deutsche Bank AG, Standard Chartered Plc, and Bank of New York Mellon Corp.

Kremlin insider Arkady Rotenberg moved millions of dollars through one of Europe’s largest banks after the United States and EU sanctioned him, according to leaked documents published for the first time.

Rotenberg, a childhood friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin, conducted $60 million in transactions through a company called Advantage Alliance at Barclays from 2012 through 2016, the BBC reported on September 20, citing documents from an arm of the U.S. Treasury Department.

The BBC report is based on documents obtained by BuzzFeed News, which shared them with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists(ICIJ).

The Guardian, a member newspaper of the ICIJ, reports that one of those named in theSuspicious Activity Reports (SARs) – which banks file SARS with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) when they have concerns about the legality of a transaction — is Paul Manafort, a political strategist who led Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential election campaign from early June until mid-August 2016.

Manafort resigned as Trump campaign chairman after his news emerged of his consulting work for former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych.

According to the ICIJ, banks began flagging activity linked to Manafort as suspicious beginning in 2012. In 2017 JP Morgan Chase filed a report on wire transfers worth over $300m involving shell companies in Cyprus that had done business with Manafort.

Many of the transactions occurred after the United States and EU sanctioned Rotenberg in 2014 following Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea. The U.S. Treasury Department has also sanctioned Rotenberg’s brother, Boris, and son, Igor.

The sanctions are meant to punish members of Russia’s inner circle and sever them from the international financial system.

Barclays closed the Advantage Alliance account in late 2016 but another alleged Rotenberg account at the bank, Ayrton Development Limited, remained open until 2017.

In July, a U.S. Senate investigation alleged the Rotenberg brothers used purchases of luxury art to evade sanctions. Among the companies involved was Advantage Alliance.