There are a lot of Russian oligarchs living in London. But why? What is so special about London that has drawn these billionaires to the city? In this blog post, we will explore some of the reasons why Russian oligarchs love London so much!
Why Do So Many Russian Oligarchs Live In London?
There’s a reason why so many Russian oligarchs have chosen to live in London – it’s a city that offers them a great deal of security and privacy.
estimated that around 25% of all Russian billionaires have homes in the city. But why is this? What is it about London that attracts these wealthy businessmen? Some people say it’s because of the favourable tax laws, while others claim that it’s because of the high level of security and stability in the city.
Wide-ranging Western sanctions against Russian President Vladimir Putin, his allies, and businesses associated with them are now a possibility as a result of the Ukraine crisis.
Additionally, it has led to increased pledges in Britain to take action against shady Russian money flowing through the country’s economy. The playground of Russian oligarchs and other well-off citizens has long been London.
Following the global financial crisis, more people flocked to the city as Britain courted foreign wealth, such as by selling resident visas to “investors.”
An anti-corruption organization called Transparency International has discovered £1.5 billion ($2 billion) in Russian money in real estate in London, the majority of which is held by shell firms in tax havens.
Approximately 6,000 homes are registered in the name of unidentified firms in the borough of Kensington & Chelsea alone; many of these are rumoured to be Russian-owned.
Approximately 6,000 homes are listed in the name of unidentified firms in the borough of Kensington & Chelsea alone; many of these are rumoured to be Russian-owned.
Oligarchs from the former Soviet Union don’t just own mansions; they also own newspapers (Evgeny Lebedev), British football teams (Roman Abramovich), pay to have university departments named after them (Len Blavatnik), send their children to the best schools, and give money to political parties, particularly the Conservatives.
The biggest spenders on British legal firms, PR agencies, and other reputation-launderers are oligarchs.
Many of the oligarchs who reside in or make investments in London are entirely legal. However, the substantial link between Russian money and illegal finance has been made clear to British activists and MPs.
In 2020, the intelligence committee of Parliament concluded that London served as a “laundromat” for dirty Russian currency. London frequently resembles an airing cupboard, where stolen goods are left after being cleaned elsewhere.
In a previous report from 2018, the Foreign Affairs Committee of Parliament discovered that “despite the powerful rhetoric, Putin and his allies have been able to continue “business as usual” by hiding and laundering their corrupt assets in London.
” This allowed the Russian lusualto “subvert the international rules-based system, undermine our allies, and erode the mutually-reinforcing international networks that support UK foreign policy,” the report stated.
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