Russian-Latvian dual citizen and billionaire Petr Aven has received authorization to transfer 235.9 million euros into a frozen bank account in Latvia from funds not currently affected by European Union (EU) sanctions, according to the magazine “Ir”.
The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of Latvia granted the authorization in February, allowing the transfer of 235 885 899 euros from an account in a Central Asian country – a former Soviet republic that has not implemented EU sanctions.
Aven did not comment to “Ir” on the reason for requesting the approval.
At the same time, “Ir” notes that data from February and March regarding frozen assets in Latvian bank accounts show the transfer has not yet taken place. If it does occur, the funds will be immediately frozen.
The magazine also points out that the mentioned amount is four times larger than the total sum currently frozen in Latvia across all sanctioned individuals’ accounts. As of the 1st of March 2025, there were 148 individuals in Latvia with frozen assets or economic resources. In total, Latvian financial institutions held 54.56 million euros in frozen assets in March.
“Ir” also reports that earlier this year, Aven and his longtime business partner Mikhail Fridman sold their shares in Russia’s Alfa Bank.
“Aven has fulfilled all the requirements needed for sanctions to be lifted,” said his representative Igor Bass.
Whether the transfer of proceeds from the Alfa Bank sale to a Latvian account could support a case for lifting sanctions remains unclear. The FIU did not provide a definitive answer. One EU criterion allows for the listing of “leading businesspeople operating in Russia,” but “the mere sale of assets in Russia by a sanctioned individual is not sufficient grounds for lifting sanctions.”
Aven was added to the EU sanctions list following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Since then, he has actively sought to have the sanctions lifted.
As previously reported by LETA, Aven indirectly held 12.4% of Alfa Bank shares but withdrew from the bank’s ownership structure earlier this year. Sanctions against Aven have been imposed by the U.S., U.K., EU, and other countries.
At the end of last year, a Ukrainian court lifted a partial corporate asset freeze on Kyivstar, Ukraine’s largest mobile operator, aimed at preventing Aven and Fridman from benefiting from the company via Netherlands-based firm VEON.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Aven’s net worth increased by 1.42 billion US dollars (approx. 1.36 billion euros) last year, reaching a total of 7.38 billion US dollars.
Through Luxembourg-based holding company LetterOne, Aven is a co-owner of Wintershall Dea (a European oil and gas company), Veon (an international mobile phone company), Turkcell (Turkey’s largest mobile operator), and other companies in the healthcare and technology sectors.
Aven also holds Latvian citizenship and has lived in Latvia with his family since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.