Russian oligarchs continue business in Netherlands despite sanctions – media

This was reported by Ukrinform, citing NOS.

“Sanctioned Russian oligarchs are using gaps in the Netherlands’ legislation to continue doing business,” the report states.

It is noted that they classify their companies, worth hundreds of millions, as microbusinesses. This allows them to conceal financial flows and evade strict reporting requirements, according to the publication.

As an example, NOS cites steel magnate Alexey Mordashov, who became wealthy in the 1990s and was placed on the EU sanctions list after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. His company, SMTT Holding BV, is registered in Amsterdam. Until recently, its value was 65 million euros, but it is classified as a microenterprise, allowing it to avoid disclosing key financial data.

Another example is Airport Alliance (Netherlands), a subsidiary of the Russian bank VTB, led by Putin associate Andrey Kostin. He is under sanctions from the US, the EU, the UK, and other countries.

Also operating in the Netherlands is the company Safmar, linked to billionaire Mikhail Gutseriev. Gutseriev has been sanctioned by the EU, Canada, and others due to his ties to the Russian leadership and the self-proclaimed president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko.

In the Netherlands, a company can qualify as a microbusiness if it has fewer than 10 employees, a balance sheet value of up to 450,000 euros, and an annual net profit not exceeding 900,000 euros.

Microbusiness status allows companies to withhold information about profits, taxes, and assets, avoid financial audits, and bypass minimum annual reporting requirements.

Originally, these rules were introduced to reduce bureaucratic pressure on small businesses, but Russian oligarchs are now exploiting them to circumvent sanctions.

As reported by Ukrinform, sanctioned Russian oligarch Kerimov owned shares in Elon Musk’s SpaceX through a trust even after the first administration of U.S. President Donald Trump imposed sanctions on him.