Topline
The European Union announced sanctions against 26 additional individuals Monday, including Russian billionaire oligarchs Mikhail Fridman, Alisher Usmanov, Alexey Mordashov, Gennady Timchenko and Alexander Ponomarenko, marking the latest measure from the West to cripple Russia economically for its invasion of Ukraine.
Key Facts
The sanctions include an asset freeze and travel ban on the named individuals, adding to the hundreds of others sanctioned by the EU last week.
The wealthiest newly sanctioned Russian is Mordashov, who, according to Forbes most recent estimates, is Russia’s second-wealthiest man thanks to his $29.1 billion fortune off his majority stake in Russian steel company Severstal.
There are four other billionaires included, according to Forbes’ calculations: Timchenko ($21.1 billion), a large stakeholder in several Russian raw materials companies, Usmanov ($15.3 billion), a metal magnate and early Facebook investor, Fridman ($13.3 billion), the founder of Russia’s largest private bank Alfa Bank, and Ponomarenko ($2.9 billion), the chairman of the board of Russia’s largest airport.
The E.U. also sanctioned Dmitry Peskov, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesperson, and cited many others’ personal ties to Putin as the reason for their inclusion.
Sogaz, a Russian insurance company partially owned by billionaire Putin ally Yuri Kovalchuk, was the only company named in the sanctions.
Surprising Fact
The billionaires named by the E.U. Monday had previously evaded Western sanctions aside from Timchenko, who already faces sanctions from the United States and United Kingdom. Timchenko was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2014 following Russia’s widely condemned annexation of Crimea in 2014 and by the U.K. last week after Putin recognized two Russian-backed rebel states in eastern Ukraine.
Tangent
Fridman became the first oligarch to speak out against the Russian invasion this weekend after a letter he sent to his employees Friday was shared by multiple outlets. In the letter, the billionaire called for “bloodshed to end,” though he clarified he didn’t intend to be “political.” Oleg Deripaska, worth $3.9 billion per Forbes’ estimates, joined Fridman in asking for peace, calling for an end to Russia’s war on Ukraine in a Sunday Telegram post.
Further Reading
Live: FIFA And UEFA Suspend Russia (Forbes)
Russia-Ukraine Updates: Oligarchs Call For Peace While E.U. Makes Historic Weapons Purchase (Forbes)
