Over $400M of Russian-affiliated assets frozen in BVI
Premier and Minister for Finance Dr Natalio Wheatley has confirmed that more than $400 million of Russian holding-related assets have been frozen in the territory since the invasion of Ukraine and subsequent sanctions by world bodies.
Speaking at the most recent sitting of the House of Assembly (HOA), the Finance Minister said it has been nearly five months since the full-blown Russian invasion of Ukraine and the world reacted with a suite of the most comprehensive set of sanctions imposed against a world power since World War II.
The sanctions involved blocking, immobilising, detaining, and seizing assets, as well as restricting access to global financial systems for Russian-affiliated businesses.
The Premier said the result of this heightened regulatory environment was as impactful on the territory as it was in other countries.
“The Virgin Islands is committed to complying with international sanctions and continues to take all requisite steps to ensure that it enforces all sanctions that are extended to it by way of the relevant Overseas Territories Orders in Council,” Dr Wheatley said.
BOSS system helped to seize Russian assets elsewhere
He noted that the use of the Beneficial Ownership Secure Search system (BOSSs), when coupled with the exchange of notes between the United Kingdom and the BVI meant the territory could share beneficial ownership information with law enforcement and regulators using the appropriate channels in less than 24 hours and within at little as one hour.
“Indeed, it was the employment of the BOSSs system which facilitated efficient information transfer about Russian-affiliated holdings and led to the freezing of relevant assets in the Virgin Islands,” Dr Wheatley said.
“The Governor’s Office, as the competent authority for sanctions in the territory, has received confirmation that assets with an estimated value of more than US$400 million have been frozen, as of 11 May 2022, since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022,” the Finance Minister added.
The Premier explained that he was advised that it was perceivable that information provided by the BVI facilitated the freezing of millions of dollars worth of assets elsewhere.
“Although the figure of assets seized in some of our competitor jurisdictions is much higher, we ought to be careful not to lose sight of the fact that these jurisdictions are anchored more strongly on a base comprising hedge, private equity and other investment funds,” Dr Wheatley said.
“The consequence of this is that the imposition of a sanction on a single entity can sometimes be measured in billions of dollars. Overall sums of dollars are not a proxy for commitment or effectiveness, and we should be confident that we have done, and have the resources to continue to do, our part,” he added.
Almost 500 requests for information this year
The Finance Minister further said that, since the start of 2022, the Financial Investigation Agency has recorded almost 500 requests for information (inclusive of requests under the Exchange of Notes).
“Whilst not all of these were specifically related to Russian sanctions, there was a noticeable increase in the number of beneficial ownership-related requests submitted between February and April this year 2022, undoubtedly linked to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine,” Dr Wheatley said.
He added that a further development coming out of the sanctions regime is the development of BVI case law by the territory’s Commercial Court. Both VTB Bank v Taruta and AO Alfa-Bank v Kipford Ventures Ltd had to examine the duty of a legal practitioner to continue to act for a sanctioned entity or person.
“The strong dicta in these judgements are likely to be followed by other courts both regionally and internationally and that is testament both to the continued commitment to the rule of law which is central to our financial services offerings and the consequential and wise decisions that this territory made years ago to invest in a properly resourced Commercial Court,” Dr Wheatley said.
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FIX THE ROAD AND THE DUMP WITH THAT
NO MORE EXCUSE
Has BOSS been used in connection with the COI inquiry? How many companies is Head Coach affiliated with?
Free the Russian assets, and stay out of sleezy selinzkey mess!
Since when we became partners with the not -azi party in Ukrain !
We don’t want Zelinzky corruption dirty money in VI. The Russians have done a lot for Europe and the wider world! We stand with Putin!
I know Slowande is going nuts trying to fiqure out a way to get his hands on this.
I don’t side with Putin however our small islands should not be taking part in the freezing of Russia’s assets. The economy is too small.
and when the big boy- russia cant attack the bigger countries – UK or USA they often then turn to the “offsprings” of these countries easier to get at if they have to do anything war-like so i agree stay out of this mess
the assets and their details that have been frozen by the BVI government – yachts, villas, bank accounts, shares, etc. What!!!! Skip the ‘confidential’ excuse in this list.
Without the details of these ‘frozen’ assets then this $400 million number is just a fake number to bolster the BVI’s tarnished reputation in the financial world. .
Yup take that money and spend it. My car needs brakes. Call it a redistribution of wealth of whatever the effin name you want. The Russians are s$$hats. Take their money
They (the UK) should really keep us out of these things as an international tourist destination, and past slave plantation we should be able to say no to discrimination… Two wrongs, we know that’s not right.
Teach the youths truth about their history and culture from which they came from. So we can ensure they are not being lead a stray or the wrong way. We need to ensure our youths aren’t chasing temporary satisfaction or personal gain but are ready to preserve the community, care for one another and live in love with one another. This will help our youths to grow in love and be confident to make conscious decisions in their lives and community. Farming, fishing, arts and craft are just a few examples. Helping the youths understand that without these things they are going to have a hard time in this world full of ‘crooks’ in suits. Crook with an agenda to push order from chaos. Crooks who seek personal gain and offer temporary satisfaction.