Donetsk governor loses assets at his second offshore haven
The British Virgin Islands are a popular destination for the assets of wealthy Ukrainians.
Serhiy Taruta, appointed to the position of governor of Donetsk in March 2014, is set to lose his assets registered on the British Virgin Islands after the Russian bank VTB filed a lawsuit to the British Virgin Islands court, the Russian daily Kommersant wrote June 2.
“The British Virgin Islands High Court of Justice ruled to freeze assets of Serhiy Taruta’s eight affiliations registered in the British Virgin Islands, as well as to disclose the information about his other assets worldwide, after the lawyers of Russian VTB bank applied to the British Virgin Islands court requiring the alienation of Taruta’s assets estimated at USD 30 mln,” according to Kommersant.
Among the assets to be frozen are the Kiev hotel Hyatt, Energomashspetsstal and ISD Corporation. In the latter Taruta is registered as a minority shareholder since he sold his majority stake of 50 percent to Russian investors in 2009.
Apart from the eight companies registered at British Virgin Islands, Taruta’s three bank accounts – two in Cyprus and one in Switzerland – are to be frozen as well.
VTB bank began the investigation on search of Taruta’s assets worldwide in February 2014.
The Donetsk municipality press service refused to comment on the governor’s business affairs, Kommersant wrote.
Photo courtesy of Jerrye and Roy Klotz Md
