Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov’s long megayacht is SEIZED in EU crackdown

A £500million superyacht owned by billionaire Alisher Usmanov has been seized amid an EU crackdown on oligarchs with alleged links to Russian president Vladimir Putin. 

The 512-foot Dilbar, regarded as one of the largest motor yacht in the world, was seized by German authorities in Hamburg.

Pictures taken today show the massive boat surrounded by scaffolding and waterproof covering as it sits in the dry dock of Blohm Voss Dock, where it has been since late October for a refitting job.

The seizure comes after Usmanov, an Uzbekistan-born billionaire with Russian citizenship and who is thought to be worth around £15billion, was sanctioned by the European Union in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Usmanov was, until recently, a key backer of Everton Football Club and is a business partner of its majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri. 

His companies provided the Premier League side with key sponsorship deals, including a £12million a year sponsorship of the club’s training ground.

But yesterday the Merseyside club confirmed it had suspended all commercial and sponsorship arrangements with Russian companies, including Usmanov’s USM Holdings company, following the invasion of Ukraine.

Workers were last night seen taking down branding of Russian mobile phone firm, Megafon, from Everton’s Goodison Park stadium. 

As Britain was accused of being too slow to hammer Russian billionaires, it also emerged today:

• In Ukraine Russia has captured its first major city after a week of fighting, with Kherson – a regional capital of 300,000 people on the Black Sea – now under the control of Putin’s forces; 
• More than one million people have fled Ukraine since the Russian invasion – 2,000 are dead including dozens of children; 
• President Macron spoke to Vladimir Putin for 90 minutes today. The French President also spoke afterwards to Ukraine’s President Zelensky;
• At least two more oligarchs could be added to the UK sanctions list today as Michael Gove said they could have their UK properties seized by the government and even handed to Ukrainians to live in;
• Britain is still on course to bolster the Kremlin’s coffers with £2billion-a-year for imported Russian liquefied natural gas as Brent crude oil today topped $119 per barrel, is now up almost 20% on the week and is expected to rise even higher because of the war in Ukraine;

Completely shrouded, the mega-yacht Dilbar lies in the Blohm Voss Dock Elbe 17 in the harbour. It has been there since late October for a refitting job

Sanctioned Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov’s megayacht has been seized by German authorities, it has been reported

The move is part of an asset freeze on Usmanov, 68, (pictured left with Putin and right with wife Irina) after he was sanctioned by the EU in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

Usmanov was, until recently, a key backer of Everton Football Club and is a business partner of Everton’s majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri. Pictured: Workers take down the branding of Everton sponsor Megafon at Goodison Park in Liverpool

Workers were last night seen taking down branding of Russian sponsors, Megafon, from Everton’s Goodison Park stadium

The announcement was made as Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich revealed he was selling his west London club after nearly 20 years following criticism of his alleged links to Putin.      

Abramovich vehemently denies he is close to the Kremlin or has done anything that would merit sanctions being imposed against him. Usmanov meanwhile has says his sanctioning by the EU is ‘unfair’ and that the reasons to justify the sanctions are ‘false and defamatory’. 

Neither Abramovich or Usmanov have faced sanctions in the UK, despite calls by MPs for the Government to impose their own measures.

It comes as French authorities today they have seized a luxury superyacht belonging to a company linked to Igor Sechin, the chief executive of Russian energy giant Rosneft and a close confidant of Putin.

The vessel, Amore Vero, was seized in the French harbour of La Ciotat on the Cote d’Azur. It is held by a company in which Sechin is the main shareholder, the French finance ministry said.

In a Tweet, sharing an official notice naming Sechin, French finance ministry Bruno Le Maire wrote: ‘A yacht belonging to a Russian oligarch has been seized. 

‘Thank you to the French customs officers who enforce the sanctions of the European Union against those close to the Russian authorities.’

It comes as French authorities today they have seized a luxury superyacht belonging to a company linked to Igor Sechin (pictured here with Putin in August last year), the chief executive of Russian energy giant Rosneft and a close confidant of Putin

The vessel, Amore Vero (pictured), was seized in the French harbour of La Ciotat on the Cote d’Azur. It is held by a company in which Sechin is the main shareholder, the French finance ministry said

Meanwhile, Usmaov’s Dilbar, which is estimated to have a value of around £500million, remains at shipyards in the northern city of Hamburg where it was seized on Monday. It has been in the Hamburg shipyards of German shipbuilding firm Blohm+Voss a refitting job since late October. 

Dilbar was custom-built for Usmanov by German shipbuilder Lürssen and took 52 months to finish.

She is one of the world’s largest yachts by volume and can hold over 100 passengers and crew in 58 cabins.

The yacht is part of Usmanov’s multibillion-pound fortune, which spans stakes in iron ore and steel giant Metalloinvest and consumer electronics firm Xiaomi, as well as holdings in telecom, mining and media.

Usmanov, an oligarch with links to Vladimir Putin, was on Monday added to a list of sanctioned individuals by the European Union.

The move, first reported by Forbes, is part of an asset freeze on Usmanov after he was sanctioned in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.  

However Usmanov hit back at the EU in a statement on the website of the International Fencing Federation, of which he is president.

He wrote: ‘On 28 February 2022 I became the target of restrictive measures imposed by the European Union.

‘I believe that such a decision is unfair, and the reason is employed to justify the sanctions are a set of false and defamatory allegations damaging my honour, dignity, and business reputation.

‘I would use all legal means to protect my owner and reputation.’ 

Despite calls from MPs, including Labour’s Dame Margaret Hodge and Chris Bryant, Usmanov has not yet been given sanctions in the UK.

Usmanov has several interests in Britain, and until this week had a sponsorship deal with Everton FC, which has since been suspended.

He is a business partner of Everton’s majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri, the pair’s relationship dating back to before the Iranian billionaire took a controlling stake in the club in February 2016. Moshiri is yet to make any comment about the situation.

But Everton – who made clear their anti-war stance before Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Manchester City – yesterday said they were aware of the scrutiny they are under and had put a stop to their links with the three companies that Usmanov has stakes in. 

USM had sponsored the club’s Finch Farm training base since signing a five-year deal in 2017 but the process is now underway to remove all branding from the facility.

USM also paid £30million in January 2020 with the option of securing naming rights for Everton’s new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock.

Megafon have huge branding on the back of the Park End Stand but, again, the club will start the process of removing it; Everton’s women’s team will also have Megafon removed from the front of their jerseys.

The ambition is to have all branding around Goodison Park removed before the next Premier League home game against Wolves on March 14. Everton face Boreham Wood in the FA Cup fifth round on Thursday.

In a statement, the club said: ‘Everyone at Everton remains shocked and saddened by the appalling events unfolding in Ukraine. 

‘This tragic situation must end as soon as possible, and any further loss of life must be avoided.

‘The players, coaching staff and everyone working at Everton is providing full support to our player Vitalii Mykolenko and his family and will continue to do so.

‘The Club can confirm that it has suspended with immediate effect all commercial sponsorship arrangements with the Russian companies USM, Megafon and Yota.’ 

As recently as 2018,  68-year-old Usmanov had a 30 per cent stake in Arsenal FC but sold out to American owner Stan Kroenke.

He also owns Beechwood House in the Highgate area of north London and Sutton Place in Surrey – collectively worth over £200million. 

Until this week, Usmanov had a sponsorship deal with Everton FC, which has since been suspended

USM put their name to Everton’s Finch Farm training ground and are a commercial partner

As recently as 2018, 68-year-old Usmanov had a 30 per cent stake in Arsenal FC but sold out to American owner Stan Kroenke. He also owns Sutton Place in Surrey

Usmanov also owns Beechwood House in the Highgate area of north London. Collectively with Sutton Place, the properties are worth £200million

It comes as fellow oligarch Abramovich began a ‘fire sale’ of his sprawling London portfolio. He is trying to offload Chelsea FC for £3billion and £200million worth of properties.

One MP yesterday claimed the Russian billionaire was acting quickly to stop his assets being frozen.

Labour‘s Chris Bryant, using parliamentary privilege to avoid legal action, alleged the tycoon planned to sell his home and an apartment because he is ‘terrified of being sanctioned’, adding that he feared the government will soon run out of time to act. 

Abramovich posing with the Champions League trophy in Porto last year with his sons Aaron (left) and Arkadiy 

Abramovich is worth 10.4bn ($12.5bn), according to Forbes, and owns a £150m Kensington mansion, a £22m penthouse, and more than £1.2bn of yachts, private jets, helicopters and supercars based in Britain and around the world

Abramovich is worth 10.4bn ($12.5bn), according to Forbes, and owns a £150m Kensington mansion, a £22m penthouse, and more than £1.2bn of yachts, private jets, helicopters and supercars based in Britain and around the world.

Chelsea FC is his most valuable British asset, after the oligarch transformed its fortunes from outside challengers to Premier League giants with the help of Jose Mourinho and huge signings like Didier Drogba, so its sale will be a personal blow to the billionaire industrialist.

Yesterday, Labour Leader Sir Keir Starmer pressed the Prime Minister on why Abramovich has not been sanctioned, claiming he had ‘links to the Russian state’ and ‘public association with corrupt activity and practices’.

Mr Johnson said it is not ‘appropriate’ for him to comment on individual cases. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has previously said she has a ‘hit list’ of oligarchs they are targeting, but has not named all of them. 

Kremlin-linked billionaires are also facing fresh threats of asset seizures from the US, with Joe Biden using his State of the Union address to say America was coming to ‘seize your yachts, your luxury apartments, your private jets’.

Abramovich has never held UK citizenship, and made his fortune selling assets purchased from the state when the USSR broke up. He vehemently denies being close to the Kremlin or doing anything that would merit sanctions.

Immigration officials are reportedly under pressure to prevent him basing himself in the UK. Scrutiny from MPs, and his status as the Britain’s best known Russian oligarch, makes him all the more vulnerable.

Abramovich has seven children from two of his ex-wives. The eldest, Anna, 29, is a Columbia University philosophy graduate who lives in New York, while Arkadiy, 27, is an industrial tycoon with substantial oil and gas investments. 

Sofia, 26, lives in London and the ‘wild child’ ‘of the family, recently posted a message on Instagram attacking Vladimir Putin for his invasion of Ukraine. Less is known about Arina, 20, and Ilya, 18, or Aaron, 11 and Leah Lou, 7, who were both born in New York to his third wife, Dasha. 

Abramovich’s current location is unknown, but he has recently been in Belarus ‘trying to help’ negotiate an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine following its illegal invasion of the country.  

The conflict entered its eight day today, with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky warning Russia was seeking to erase Ukraine and its people after officials said 2,000 civilians had been killed.    

Ministers poised for emergency laws to FINALLY crackdown on oligarchs – but is it too late? ‘Terrified’ Abramovich sells off assets and experts warn Russian billionaires are ALREADY buying ‘untouchable’ Bitcoin – as EU seizes Russian ‘Darth Vader’s’ yacht

By Martin Robinson for MailOnline

Boris Johnson is today under huge pressure to go faster in targeting Russian oligarchs after it was claimed Britain will not sanction Roman Abramovich and others for ‘weeks or months’ – if at all – after the Foreign Office ‘dropped the ball’ and failed to build legally-sound cases. 

MPs have branded the UK an embarrassment for failing to grab a single mansion or serious asset from Putin’s oligarchs as it emerged that unpunished Russian billionaires have used delays to shovel vast amounts of cash out of Britain into Bitcoin, which is still exceptionally hard to trace. 

Roman Abramovich has put Chelsea up for sale for £3billion having already lined up a bid led by a Swiss billionaire and is also said to be getting rid of £200million of palatial London property because he is allegedly ‘terrified of being sanctioned’. He is said to have demanded bids for the West London football team by tomorrow amid claims he has launched a ‘fire sale’ to avoid having his British assets frozen.

Today French authorities seized a yacht they linked to Rosneft chairman Igor Sechin – a close ally of the Russian President – in the Mediterranean port of La Ciotat close to Marseille. Oil baron Sechin is Putin’s close friend and de facto deputy – nicknamed Darth Vader due to his fearsome power in Russia having started as Putin’s secretary in 1994. He is already subject to a travel ban and asset freeze by the US.

Yesterday EU-sanctioned Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov, the former owner of Arsenal who lives in a £50m Surrey mansion, had his $600million megayacht Dilbar, described as his most prized possession, seized by the Germans in Hamburg yesterday as EU sanctions bit the oligarchs.

Labour MP Chris Bryant, who has been particularly critical of the decision not to sanction Mr Abramovich claiming Boris Johnson is ‘frightened’, said today: ‘I don’t understand why we haven’t seized a single Putin oligarch yacht, palace or serious asset yet. Unlike our European neighbours’. He added: ‘Auction houses, including Christie’s and Sotheby’s, are likely see some very valuable assets being traded by Putin supporters. They should refuse to handle them’. 

Tom Tugendhat, the chairman of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, called for the Government to go further to follow European allies to seize oligarchs’ assets.

‘We should be looking immediately to seize those assets linked to those who are profiting from Putin’s war machine, holding it in trust and returning it to the Russian people as soon as possible,’ he said.

Senior Tory MP Tobias Ellwood echoed the call, warning there will be ‘increasing public anger that we’re not doing enough to help our fellow Ukrainians in their hour of need’.

The chairman of the Commons Defence Committee told PA: ‘There’s a race to squeeze Putin given the war crimes he’s now committing in Ukraine and London continues to be seen as ground zero as to where oligarchs’ investments sit. So we need to be impounding these assets in days, not weeks or months. Every day we wait offers more time for the oligarchs to move their wealth to other parts of the world. Don’t forget it’s not their wealth, this is the stolen wealth from the Russian people which is utilised to keep Putin in power.’

Today The Times reports that the Government lawyers tried to build a case against the Chelsea owner in 2018 – but failed, warning ministers that getting it wrong could see him sue them for millions if the decision was flawed. 

A senior sanctions lawyer today said that the Foreign Secretary Liz Truss’ legal team has been bombarded with letters from lawyers representing oligarchs ‘to buy them time’ to sell off assets and move cash.

A Government insider said: ‘We have issues with both the legal capacity and the investigative capacity. There are some very fundamental issues in even identifying their assets, never mind linking them to the Putin regime.

‘We’re talking about weeks and months. Liz is frustrated. She wants to name Abramovich and others but has been told that she can’t. But the Foreign Office has dropped the ball on this one’. 

The Prime Minister’s spokesman has since said he ‘does not recognise’ the account. 

But in tacit acceptance that the sanctioning of oligarchs has not gone entirely to plan, amid rumours there could be emergency legislation introduced, he added there is a ‘constant review of whether we can do more to go even faster’. 

No British-based oligarchs have lost any assets at all because of the UK Government, and have used the past week to transfer their pots of cash out of the country, often into the cryptocurrency markets, experts have said.  

French authorities have seized the yacht Amore Vero linked to Rosneft boss Igor Sechin – a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin – in the Mediterranean port of La Ciotat close to Marseille (pictured today)

Rosneft Board Chairman Igor Sechin (L) and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin together last August. The men are close friends with Sechin described as his ‘Darth Vader’

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich (pictured with third wife Dasha Zhukova), whose money turned the club into a football powerhouse, is said to be selling off his homes having already put the club up for sale

The Russian billionaire Abramovich, 54, reportedly boasts a British property empire that includes a 15-bedroom mansion in Kensington (pictured) that is believed to be now worth £125 million. Mr Abramovich has denied there are any grounds to sanction him

Russians own £1.5billion of UK property. These are the homes reportedly owned by some of the highest profile billionaires

Security Minister Damian Hinds today insisted the UK has a ‘comprehensive’ programme of sanctions and economic punishments, adding: ‘It’s not a competition, it’s something we do together to make sure we have maximum impact. We’ve always been clear it’s a ratchet approach. There will also be more [individuals]. We are not going to tell people in advance’.

Sanctions lawyer Nigel Kushner, chief executive of W Legal in London, is currently advising several wealthy Russians fearing they will have their UK assets frozen – and accused the Government of leaving the door open for rich clients to move their cash.

He said: ‘Some will say [Government policy] defeats the whole object of sanctions because they have spent the last week moving their money out of this jurisdiction. I will explain to them that the moment they are sanctioned their bank accounts will be frozen. They will say to me, can I move my money out before I’m on the list, and I will say that’s perfectly legitimate.

‘Some will say that the government has softened the blow by allowing them the time to move their money out’. 

He added: ‘The immediate problem is where they are going to move their cash to. There aren’t many safe havens. They won’t want to move their funds to Russia. That’s the last place you’d want to go. 

‘Some might purchase Bitcoin – we’ve seen that and other cryptocurrencies go up in value over the last few days. It’s tricky for them. It’s the only option for many of them, because no bank in the world will touch them once you are on the sanction list. You’re persona non grata. Where do you put your money?’.

Mr Kushner also suggested that the Foreign Office had also been slow to act after threats from oligarchs’ lawyers. 

He said: ‘Liz Truss has suggested that aggressive lawyers have written to the Foreign Office threatening to bring claims if their Oligarch clients are sanctioned and it’s taking more time to put the jigsaw pieces together to properly sanction them.

‘I haven’t written any of those letters myself – I prefer a more consensual approach to seek to explain why the links aren’t there because threatening the Government is going to be counter-productive. I imagine those who have written will say it is buying their client time to move assets out and perhaps dispose of shares in companies. But while you can press a button and move your millions or billions out of a bank account, what you can’t easily to is transfer a title of a house in Belgravia or shares in a football club overnight’. 

Downing Street has denied the Foreign Office has been held back from issuing sanctions against Russian oligarchs because officials are struggling to prove reasonable grounds.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: ‘I wouldn’t recognise that. We are not being held back from introducing sanctions.

‘We’ve gone further and faster than we ever have done before but we do have laws that we need to abide when it comes to how we apply these sanctions and we are following them.

‘As you would expect we keep under constant review whether or not we can do more to allow us to go even faster.’

Downing Street has said sanctioning large banks and companies is what will ‘throttle off funding’ for the Russian invasion and is more effective than targeting oligarchs.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: ‘When it comes to individuals it is the case that we need to do the preparatory work, the requisite work, to make sure it is legally sound before introduction. Like I said, we will keep that under review and if there are ways to further speed it up then we will.

‘I wouldn’t want people to get lost on the fact of just focusing on individuals. Obviously what is important is what puts the most pressure on Putin’s regime.

‘Our judgment is placing sanctions particularly on large banks and companies… that is what we believe will exert the most pressure on Putin’s regime and will throttle off funding for this illegal war against Ukraine.’

Sir Keir Starmer used Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday to suggest more action is needed from the UK to ‘stand up to Putin and those who prop up his regime’.

The Labour leader told MPs: ‘Roman Abramovich is the owner of Chelsea Football Club and various other high-value assets in the United Kingdom. He’s a person of interest to the Home Office because of his links to the Russian state and his public association with corrupt activity and practices.

‘Last week, the Prime Minister said that Abramovich is facing sanctions. He later corrected the record to say that he isn’t. Well, why on earth isn’t he?’

Sir Keir added: ‘Last week, Putin summoned to the Kremlin the cronies who prop up his regime, they dip their hands in the blood of Putin’s war.

‘Among them was Igor Shuvalov, Putin’s former deputy prime minister. Shuvalov owns two flats, not five minutes walk from this House. They’re worth over £11million. He is on the EU sanctions list, but he’s not on the UK sanctions list. When will the Prime Minister sort this out?’

Boris Johnson would not comment on individual cases but insisted measures being brought forward to expose the ownership of properties will ‘continue to tighten the noose around Putin’s regime’.

He added that a ‘full list of all those associated’ with the Russian president’s regime will be published, and later told MPs: ‘I do hope that those who have any links with the Putin regime whatever, any so-called oligarchs… take this opportunity, as some brave individuals already have, to disassociate themselves from this barbaric invasion.’

Chris Bryant, who sits on the Commons foreign affairs committee, claimed earlier this week that Mr Abramovich was selling his palatial London home to avoid having his assets frozen under British sanctions. He said the Chelsea owner was ‘terrified of being sanctioned’ and ministers should act quickly. ‘He’s already going to sell his London home tomorrow and another flat as well,’ the Labour MP told the Commons on Tuesday.