Transparency International says 33 properties worth £700m may be linked to sanctioned Russians
The British government’s ability to investigate the true ownership of properties has come into question after researchers found £700m of luxury homes previously linked to sanctioned oligarchs are not flagged for asset freezes.
The campaign group Transparency International UK has identified 33 houses, flats and office blocks in London or Surrey that are not marked as restricted on the UK property register, which it says have been publicly linked to sanctioned individuals, raising questions about whether they should have been flagged.
The £90m home on Kensington Palace Gardens which has been repeatedly reported as belonging to Abramovich. The Land Registry lists the owner as A. Corp Trustee Ltd, a Cyprus company that gave a company at Chelsea’s stadium as its service address.
Hamstone House, a £7m Surrey art deco mansion in the gated St George’s Hill estate that has been linked to Deripaska. The property is owned via Cyprus-incorporated Edenfield Investments.
Witanhurst, reportedly linked via a series of companies to the chemicals magnate Andrey Guryev. The property is owned via Boradge Ltd, incorporated in the British Virgin Islands.
