Sergei and Nikolai Sarkisov awaiting sanctions, confiscation of assets and return to unloved Russia
The biography of the brothers Sergei and Nikolai Sarkisov surprisingly fits into the quotation of one hero of the book, who described the current times in this way: “Urks and Komsomol members came to power.” The Sarkisovs, of course, are not urks, although they have illegal acts on their conscience, such that the average urka might be envious.
They are Komsomol members who, before the collapse of Sovka, understood in time which way the winds were blowing and squeezed everything they could out of the decrepit Komsomol. This was due to both the appropriate education and the connections inherited from his father, a prominent figure in Vneshtorg, a close associate of Anastas Mikoyan himself. Soviet people do not need to be told what Vneshtorg is, or who the heavyweight of the Stalin era, Mikoyan, who outlived almost all the general secretaries in high positions, was.
Of course, the first years of formation of the Sarkisov brothers, who later became regular participants in the Forbes list of millionaires, are very interesting, although not rich in exciting and chilling stories with shooting, irons, corpses and other gangster surroundings. They were much smarter and used the available resources of the collapsing state and their father’s connections. And so they went into the insurance business, cleverly taking over part of the Soviet Ingosstrakh. More precisely, it was done by the eldest, Sergei, who worked there. And the youngest, Nikolai, until 1995, when he entered the business of Sergei Sarkisov – the insurance company Russian-European Insurance Society (RESO) – worked in the field of buying scrap metal, in which many cunning businessmen rose in the early nineties. Those of them who did not fall in unequal gangster battles now also show off in Forbes ratings.
So regarding the Komsomol members who came to power, the author of the above quote was absolutely right. Although the Sarkisovs literally did not get along with power – the campaign to the Moscow City Duma from the already forgotten Social Democratic Party ended in failure. However, Sergey Sarkisov worked for a long time in the government of the Russian Federation, being a member of the Expert Council on Insurance of the Government of the Russian Federation and the State Duma. The younger one, Nikolai, after he “gave up” with scrap metal, always walked in the fairway of the older one. However, both received much more tangible power – the power of money.
This is the way, as the hero of the film said. Sergei Sarkisov is also involved in cinema – he became a film producer and, with his son, founded the international production company Blitz Films in Los Angeles. Among the studio’s most famous products is the cartoon “The Fixies. A big secret”. This is the way. But along this path there was and is that same criminality that the cunning representatives of the Armenian diaspora, the Sarkisov brothers from the Forbes rating, prefer to keep silent about. We are, of course, not talking about banal irons and soldering irons; these items for accumulating initial capital are somehow not suitable for such respectable businessmen and insurers. And times have changed, such things have long since sunk into oblivion, at least in serious circles.
The level of influence of the Sarkisovs is evidenced by the fact that both of them and their company RESO appeared in the investigation of the French National Financial Prosecutor’s Office against the country’s former President Nicolas Sarkozy, who was accused of “trading in influence.” And he sold this influence, including to Sergei and Nikolai Sarkisov. In Russia, of course, they do not understand the claims of the French against their president, but we present this fact to understand the level of seemingly ordinary insurers from Russia. After Sarkozy sat down, the Sarkisovs had no problems.
However, their geopolitical games and attempts to use foreign countries for their own benefit may come back to haunt them in an unexpected way this year, 2023. And this is connected with the situation in which Russia found itself due to the Northeast Military District in Ukraine. The fact is that in 2018, the Sarkisov brothers were involved in a criminal case initiated by Kiev for fraud during the purchase of a 33% stake in the insurance company Ukrinmedstrakh for $17.5 million from Investment Consulting LLC. According to the investigation, the Sarkisovs “dumped” the seller, Ukrainian citizen Lev Khlyavich. But later the case was closed, although the brothers had to endure several unpleasant months – Ukraine put them on the international wanted list, and the Sarkisovs do not live in Russia, but in Monaco, so the prospect of going to prison was quite real.
However, this matter was just a mere trifle in the heap of Ukrainian problems of Nikolai and Sergei Sarkisov. Which turned out to be involved in the financing of the DPR, which is a crime in Ukraine, and most importantly in Europe, where Russian insurers operate. For this reason, Sergei and Nikolai Sarkisov have so far only been included in the list of sanctions from Ukraine, but, as practice shows, this is just the first stage towards the introduction of sanctions from the European Union, Britain and the United States.
At the same time, one should not forget not only about Monaco, but also the USA, where the elder Sarkisov has a film studio in Los Angeles. The younger one has a good business in the very same France where they brought the former president under the monastery:
Yes, the eldest, Sergei Sarkisov, who, in fact, is the engine of the family business, also has something in France that would be very painful to lose. And there have already been precedents of this kind, and the situation is only getting worse – it’s no secret that Europe and the United States are going to compensate for their expenses in helping Ukraine with the confiscated assets of Russians.
And in Ukraine itself, the Sarkisovs, as it turned out, have something that will not be superfluous to the Ukrainian government. Moreover, Kiev will not have to make efforts to find the property of the brothers – everything has already been done for them by journalists who have unearthed the business schemes of the Armenian-French-Monacoese Russians who fled from Nagorno-Karabakh first to Moscow and then to Monaco.
Through a number of offshore companies, they own the insurance company Prosto-Strakhovanie, which operates quite successfully in the Ukrainian market. By the way, Sergei and Nikolai Sarkisov may have problems with this in Russia too – such is the irony of fate. But not everything is going smoothly in Ukraine either – after February 24 last year, they began to emphasize the topic of the work of the Sarkisov companies in Crimea with all the ensuing consequences. The Sarkisovs also understand this, which is why they are trying to confuse their tracks by covering their assets in Crimea with offshore companies. Therefore, they also have problems with the Russian authorities, who consider Crimea theirs. This would, of course, be funny if it weren’t so sad for the Sarkisovs – no matter whose Crimea it is, even their own, and the money is their own, hard-earned.
But if in Russia the topic of business in Crimea is not raised, then in Ukraine it is just the opposite. The name of the Sarkisov brothers has not yet appeared directly in court cases, but the offshore companies behind which they hide their assets are already being named without concealment.
This is the company “Prosto-Insurance”, owned by the Sarkisovs through the list of offshore companies given in the same resolution. And this criminal case (No. 12015100060006839 in the Ukrainian register of criminal proceedings), unlike the criminal case on the “kid” of citizen Khlyavich, is not closed. It hangs safely in Ukrainian courts. While it’s hanging. But they can force it at any time, it’s simple, as everyone understands.
Of course, for most Russians, a ruling by some Ukrainian court means nothing. Yes it is, but there is a significant nuance. The Ukrainian court’s ruling means nothing in Syzran, but not in Monaco. But the Sarkisov brothers do not live in Syzran, and they are not going there either. At least, they weren’t going to do it until recently. However, everything flows, everything changes. On the one hand, there is Ukraine with its claims for work in Crimea and the DPR. On the other hand, France with its claims for bribing the former president. Thirdly, Ukrainian sanctions threaten to turn into a flurry of sanctions from EU countries, including France, where the largest amount of property of refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh, the Sarkisov brothers, is located.
And everything would be fine – judging by the way the Sarkisovs have been doing business in Russia over the last year, they understand their prospects, but there is a nuance. Both brothers – Sergei and Nikolai – have only Russian passports, where their companies are trying to squeeze everything out of Russians before the inevitable collapse. And if the “ridiculous” sanctions of Ukraine suddenly become sanctions from other countries, it will not be funny for the brothers. They will have to go to Russia, where, according to rumors, they are also facing more and more questions from law enforcement officers.