contents
Nowhere in the world is it easier to invest money than in London. Oligarchs use it too.
Kensington is an affluent area in the heart of London. It is currently particularly popular with young Russians, as the director of a well-known real estate company told The Times newspaper: “I recently sold a house to a Russian family for 25 million francs. I thought the parents were moving to London. But the house was for the son who studies here. He’s almost 18 years old.”
According to the British Statistics Office, a good 85,000 properties in London are owned by foreigners. Russian citizens – including oligarchs who made fortunes when the Soviet Union collapsed – are so numerous that individual neighborhoods are now nicknamed “Londongrad” or, in the case of Eaton Square, “Red Square”.
Legend:
Eaton Square in London is also known as Red Square, in reference to Red Square, because of its Russian residents.
key stone
The economist and anti-corruption activist Roman Borosovich has been dealing with the British financial center for years. Nowhere in the world is it easier to invest money than in London. The advantages of the location are lax laws, a high density of banks, real estate companies and law firms. Foreign money in London also has a long tradition.
Like in the days of the Empire
“During the colonial period, it was officials, Crown officers and aristocrats who were sent to India or Africa to plunder the indigenous population and transfer the wealth to London. That’s how the Empire financed itself.” The perpetrators are no longer the British, but foreign kleptocrats.
Money flows into London from foreign countries and nobody asks questions.
But the principle is still the same: “Money flows from foreign countries to London and nobody asks questions.” This business model has not only been criticized by activists like Borosovich for a long time. An investigation by the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Commons four years ago came to the conclusion that bankers and real estate dealers ask too few questions when they accept Russian money.
Legend:
David Lammy, Labor’s foreign policy spokesman, wants a debate on “Russian expansion in our own country”.
imago images
The commission recommended stricter laws and a land register. Nothing has happened to this day, Labor shadow secretary David Lammy recently told foreign journalists. «It is important that we stand up against Russian aggression abroad. But just as importantly, we deal with Russian expansion in our own country.”
London threatens to become the world’s dirty money laundromat.
With a real estate market increasingly in the hands of kleptocrats, London is in danger of becoming the “world’s laundromat for dirty money”. Even US President Joe Biden doubts that sanctions against the Putin regime can be implemented as long as London tolerates Russian money being flooded to Great Britain, according to Lammy.
law is awaited
A draft law that would force foreign investors to disclose their assets and cash flows has been stuck in the government machinery for years. How will the government implement sanctions and punish oligarchs with Kremlin connections if their finances remain largely hidden?
Legend:
“We are in the process of introducing new legislation to expand our ability to enforce sanctions,” Liz Truss told the BBC.
key stone
Faced with the question by the BBC, Secretary of State Liz Truss said: “Freedom and democracy are more important than short-term economic gains. That is why we want to improve our legislation to combat illegal financing and we will continue to examine what can still be done.” Despite repeated inquiries, Truss initially left open what that means exactly, what is checked and how long the check will continue.