A dense network of lawyers and PR firms that oil the wheels of billionaires | Russia

In November 2017, it was revealed that a bank with close ties to the Kremlin had invested £140m in Twitter.

The acquisition of shares by DST Global, founded by Russian-born billionaire Yuri Milner, was funded by the Kremlin-controlled bank VTB, which is currently under British sanctions, leaked documents have shown.

Milner said it was “a fairy tale” at the time to suggest that the investments bought in May 2011 could be used to influence social media on Russia’s behalf. He said that DST Global was a “passive investor”.

While Twitter shares are currently sold, corporate documents show that the “support” address for DST Global companies holding shares was a four-story townhouse in Mayfair, London. This stucco-fronted building is the base of Alistair Tulloch, one of the most powerful lawyers among Russia’s super-rich.

Over the years, those who have tried to unravel the financial documents of Russian investments, oligarchs and officials have found that Tulloch’s name – or the address of his law firm Tulloch & Co – often pops up in the documents.

An investigation by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists last October based on leaked offshore documents known as the Pandora Papers revealed that Tulloch’s law firm helped manage the offshore companies of former Russian Deputy Finance Minister Andrey Vavilov and Russian banker Vitaly Zhogin. .

Igor Shuvalov, former Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation. Photo: Kommersant Photo Agency/REX/Shutterstock

Ownership records and company documents linked to the Tulloch firm also lead to other former Kremlin politicians and Russian businessmen. Among them is Igor Shuvalov, a former Russian deputy prime minister who was sanctioned by the UK government last week after pressure from Labor leader Keir Starmer.

Shuvalov owns two apartments in Whitehall with chandeliers and marble furnishings. Previous registration in land registry records shows that the “service” address for the registered owner of the property was the law firm of Tulloch.

Tulloch, who was educated at Oxford, is also a trustee of various charities. These include the Mamut Foundation, which is linked to Moscow-based billionaire Alexander Mamut.

In 2014, Mamut fired Galina Timchenko, editor of his Russian news website Lenta.ru, for publishing an interview with a far-right Ukrainian nationalist. She was replaced by a pro-Kremlin journalist.

Charity Commission records show that the Mamut Foundation awarded Eton College two grants of £100,000 each in 2016 and 2017 to support its library. Eton College said last week it was no longer receiving funds from the charity. He did not comment on whether Alexander Mamut had established what was behind the charity.

Tulloch said: “We are in full compliance with UK regulations. And it is obvious that in the modern world we are incredibly reverent about immigrants from Russia and make sure that everyone is properly assessed.”

It is argued that such rules were too lax because politicians were long reluctant to cut off the ties that were being forged with Russia. This means London, referred to by critics as “Londongrad”, has become a nexus for Russian money and a global professional services hub for the country’s oligarchy.

Ben Elliot, Co-Chairman of the Conservative Party. Photo: James Vesey/REX/Shutterstock

At the summer ball of the Conservatives in June 2013, it was revealed that the London-based public relations firm New Century Media had invited two famous Russians – Vasily Shestakov, a member of the Russian Duma and a friend of Vladimir Putin, and Andrei Klyamko. Russian billionaire. Both men were pictured with then Prime Minister David Cameron.

Court documents also show that New Century Media acted on behalf of oligarch Vladimir Makhlai, who entered the UK on a golden visa. The service fee, including “reputation management”, was £75,000 per month. New Century Media has contributed over £200,000 to the Conservative Party and is led by former Unionist Ulster MP David Burnside.

Another firm that has benefited from ties to Russia is concierge service Quintessentially, co-founded by Ben Elliot, co-chair of the Conservative Party. “It’s not enough just to have money,” says a recently removed page for potential Russian clients on the company’s website. “You have to have the right contacts to make the most of that money.” The firm said it condemned the invasion of Ukraine and vetted its clients to make sure none were on the sanctions list.

Also in the spotlight are the lawyers hired to bring cases against journalists investigating the activities of the Russian oligarchy. Conservative MP Bob Seeley used parliamentary privilege last week to name lawyers who worked for Russian oligarchs.

A spokesman for New Century Media said: “We fully condemn the military actions in Ukraine. Neither Shestakov nor Klyamko have ever been clients of New Century Media. New Century Media has no Russian billionaires or Russian government clients. We have never worked with people under sanctions.”

DST Global said the international firm, with offices in London, New York and Beijing, has not raised capital from Russian limited partners since 2011. returned to 2014. The firm said Milner has been an Israeli citizen since the late 1990s and moved to the US in 2014.

The Mamut Foundation did not respond to a request for comment.