Sanctioned Russian Oligarchs No Longer in Foreign Investors Council

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Russian businessmen Oleg Deripaska and Dmitry Pumpyansky are no longer listed as members of the Foreign Investors Council under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan (FIC). Both are under international sanctions, Orda.kz reports.

On October 1, President Qasym-Jomart Toqayev approved a new version of the personal list of Foreign Investors Council members. This list includes representatives of companies such as Glencore, Shell, Chevron, Eni, Petro China, Deloitte, Lukoil, etc.

The council's official website lists among its members the Russian companies UC RUSAL and PJSC Pipe Metallurgical Company (TMK). RUSAL's founder and former president is Oleg Deripaska, whose fortune was estimated at $2.3 billion in 2020. He was ranked No. 51 in the Russian Forbes Billionaires rating.

Dmitry Pumpyansky is the former chair of the board of directors and a key beneficiary of TMK. The Russian PJSC has enterprises in Kazakhstan. Both businessmen no longer formally manage their corporations, as they are under sanctions. Deripaska has been since 2018, and Pumpyansky since 2022.

According to the US Treasury Department, Oleg Deripaska financed projects at the request of Russian President Vladimir Putin and other high-ranking Russian officials. Dmitry Pumpyansky, from the point of view of the authorities of the US, Canada, the European Union, Japan, and several other countries, is a “close associate of the Russian regime” who helps the Kremlin financially.

The information on the AKSII website seems to be outdated. The council member list still includes ArcelorMittal Temirtau, which is no longer present in Kazakhstan. RUSAL and TMK may have left the council some time ago, and this decision has simply been officially documented.

The businessmen's departure from the council is likely intended to protect the Kazakh authorities from the risk of secondary sanctions. Nothing prevents Russian oligarchs from continuing to develop their businesses and acquire new assets through frontmen and intermediaries. In August, information surfaced that the new investor of the Atyrau airport may be connected with Oleg Deripaska through its key shareholder, French citizen Abraham Daniel Danino.

Original Author: Nikita Drobny

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