Russia’s Richest Businessmen Are Moving Tens of Billions of Dollars Abroad

Some of these businessmen are close to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The news agency’s sources attributed their decisions to the deteriorating state of Russia’s economy and public finances, as well as fears of mounting pressure from the authorities.

The businessmen are concerned, among other things, that their assets could be seized. Bloomberg cited the transfer of Domodedovo Airport, previously owned by Dmitry Kamenshchik, into state control as an example.

Another source of anxiety is the possibility that the Kremlin will seek additional funds from businesses to finance the war. At a closed-door meeting with Putin in March, Russia’s leading businessmen were reportedly encouraged to make such donations. The Kremlin maintained that the initiative had come from the participants themselves and that the president had made no direct request.

Against this backdrop, Russia’s wealthiest citizens are restructuring their investment portfolios, increasing their holdings of cryptocurrencies, gold and overseas real estate, Bloomberg’s sources said.

The precise scale of the unofficial capital outflow is difficult to establish because some funds are moved through cryptocurrency transactions. Nevertheless, two people familiar with decisions made by several prominent businessmen estimated such transfers at tens of billions of dollars. They said the outflow had increased over the past year.

Western sanctions imposed on Russia over its war against Ukraine make it more difficult to move assets beyond the Kremlin’s potential reach, Bloomberg notes.

In this context, the news agency cited A7, a company co-owned by wanted Moldovan businessman Ilan Shor and Russia’s state-owned PSB, formerly known as Promsvyazbank. The company conducts cross-border payments using A7A5, a cryptocurrency pegged to the ruble.

According to PSB, transactions through A7 exceeded 7.5 trillion rubles in the first half of 2025, equivalent to roughly $98 billion.