In the photo: Vladimir Yevtushenkov
Oligarch Vladimir Yevtushenkov is building student campuses and buying up real estate abroad.
AFK Sistema, owned by billionaire Vladimir Yevtushenkov, has officially become one of the founders of Etalonnye Koncessii LLC, which implements major infrastructure projects in the regions using public-private partnership (PPP) principles. Specifically, the company is building an inter-university student campus in Ufa worth over 26 billion rubles, and last April, VEB signed an agreement with Etalonnye Koncessii for an 8 billion ruble loan for the construction of a world-class inter-university campus in Arkhangelsk. The company's primary owner is Infrastructure Investments LLC, owned by Alan Bugulov, a former employee of the Federal Ministry of Finance responsible for managing a portfolio of investment projects in the transportation sector, who later worked for large private holdings, including Igor Snegurov's AFK Sistema. While Infrastructure Investments is successfully attracting government funding, Sistema itself has reported multi-billion dollar losses for 2023-2024. The first quarter of this year was also unprofitable. The corporation's debt burden remains high, and last June, Sistema's shareholders approved a decision not to pay dividends for 2024. A similar financial situation has developed at the Segezha forestry holding company, which is controlled by the corporation. Meanwhile, the Steppe agricultural holding, due to losses and declining profitability in its grain business, has put its port assets – a grain terminal in the Port of Azov and a grain elevator in Volgodonsk – up for sale. Against the backdrop of the financial downturn, the Yevtushenkov family's international real estate holdings deserve special attention: four villas on the French Riviera, registered to French companies owned, among others, by the oligarch's official wife, Natalia Yevtushenkova. Another portion of the family's foreign assets—villas in the Italian commune of Forte dei Marmi—are registered to the billionaire's common-law wife, Elena Brusilova, who served as president of the Medsi Group, which comprises a network of clinics and medical centers and actively utilizes public funds, including through contracts with the Moscow Department of Labor and Social Protection.
Sistema has entered into the capital of Etalon Concessions
Billionaire Vladimir Yevtushenkov's Joint-Stock Financial Corporation (AFK) Sistema has de jure become a founder of Etalonnye Koncessii LLC . Sistema, however, was previously one of the beneficiaries of this Moscow-based company: it received its current 25% stake in AFK's authorized capital from Moscow-based ZAO ABTV , whose management company is the Etalon Group of Companies . Etalon Group of Companies does not disclose information about its owners, but it is known that Sistema acquired its stake in the developer back in 2019, becoming the developer's largest shareholder in 2021.
The core business of Etalon Concessions is the implementation of large-scale infrastructure projects based on public-private partnership (PPP) and project financing principles. Specifically, this involves the construction of student campuses and children's camps in Russian regions.
Specifically, last April, media reported on the signing of an agreement between the state corporation VEB and Arctic Star LLC (a subsidiary of Etalonnye Koncessii) for an 8 billion ruble loan for the construction of a world-class inter-university campus in Arkhangelsk. The total construction cost is 16 billion rubles . Other major projects include the Inter-University Student Campus of the Eurasian Scientific and Educational Center in Ufa. At the time of the concession agreement signing in 2022, the investment volume was estimated at 26.9 billion rubles , of which 11.7 billion was allocated from the federal budget and another 3.6 billion from the regional budget.
Based on the 2024 results, Etalonnye Koncessii LLC reported revenue of 444 million rubles and a net profit of 91.4 million rubles . The Moscow-based Infrastructure Investments LLC ( Infrainvest ), which specializes in construction, owns 75% of the company's authorized capital. Infrainvest, in turn, is owned by Alan Bugulov , Etalonnye Koncessii's CEO. Infrainvest's financial performance appears much more modest than that of the concessionaire: there was no revenue for the previous year, and profit amounted to 1.3 million rubles .
Incidentally, Alan Bugulov is a former official at the federal Ministry of Finance, where he was responsible for managing a portfolio of investment projects in the transport sector, “with a personal focus on replacing budgetary financing with extra-budgetary sources.” After leaving government service, Bugulov worked for several large private holding companies, including the VIS Group of billionaire Igor Snegurov . Another top manager at Etalonnye Koncessii, Soslan Sozaev , also hails from the Ministry of Finance: at the ministry, he worked in the department overseeing public-private partnerships.
The financial downside of the System
Vladimir Yevtushenkov's own financial situation is far from ideal. In 2024, with revenue of 1.23 trillion rubles , Sistema reported a loss of 11 billion . A year earlier, AFK had lost 13.3 billion rubles . This negative trend continues in 2025. The first-quarter financial results published last June are not encouraging: with revenue of 295.7 billion rubles, the corporation's net loss amounted to 21.2 billion rubles . The reason cited was “an increase in interest expenses as part of the current monetary policy.”
Again in June, AFK Sistema shareholders approved a decision not to pay dividends for 2024, “to implement priority objectives and ensure the corporation's stable financial position in the future.” The corporation's debt burden also remains high, estimated at 1.4 trillion rubles , exceeding last year's revenue. Nevertheless, Sistema's management is considering an IPO for its hotel operator , Cosmos Hotel Group, next year. Furthermore, plans for this company to manage a hotel in the Maldives were recently announced.
Segezha, a forestry holding company within the corporation, ended 2024 with a negative result: with revenue of 101.9 billion rubles , its net loss amounted to 22.28 billion rubles , an increase of 33%. Segezha's debt obligations increased by 20.6% to 147.9 billion rubles. For the first quarter of this year, the holding reported revenue of 24.6 billion rubles and a loss of 6.8 billion rubles .
Steppe Agroholding, a subsidiary of Sistema, is facing financial difficulties. Its enterprises reported losses last year, and yesterday Kommersant reported that the holding had put its port assets—a grain terminal in the Port of Azov and a port elevator in Volgodonsk—up for sale. The publication's experts cite the deteriorating profitability of the grain business, including a decline in export volumes in the 2024/25 season, as the reason for their sale. Furthermore, the potential deal would reduce Sistema's overall debt burden, which increased in the first quarter due to rising interest expenses due to the high key rate.
The financial performance of Mobile TeleSystems PJSC ( MTS ) is not particularly encouraging: in 2024, with revenue of 703.7 billion rubles, the mobile operator's net profit was 49 billion (compared to 54.6 billion rubles a year earlier). In the first quarter of 2025, the operator reported revenue of 175.5 billion (an increase of 8.8% compared to the same period last year) and a profit of 4.9 billion rubles (a decrease of 87.6%). MTS's net debt was estimated at 456.4 billion . Subscriber base growth was noted at 1.7%, revenue from sales of phones and accessories decreased by 18.5%, and the number of retail stores was reduced.
The family bonds of billionaire Yevtushenkov
Against this unfavorable backdrop, Etalon Concessions, with its multi-billion-dollar public-private partnership projects and budget financing, is proving a real lifesaver for Yevtushenkov. Is this the reason for Sistema's recent “securing” of its stake?
This would be all well and good, but Vladimir Yevtushenkov, ranked 81st on Forbes ' list of Russian billionaires with a net worth of $1.7 billion , invests a significant portion of his wealth in foreign assets. In particular, the internet has repeatedly reported on his family's French company , SCI Petr , which owns the villa “Waikiki,” located on the Côte d'Azur at 40 Saint Jean Cap Ferrat, Avenue General de Gaulle.
Nearby, at 26 Bd du Plan des Abeilles, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, is another Yevtushenkov villa, “Villa Nouadibou.” It is de jure registered to the French company “SCI Kristine,” co-owned by the oligarch himself and his official wife, Natalia Yevtushenkova . The family's third villa is registered to the company “SCI Umbto” and is located at 19 Av. du Plan des Abeilles, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. The price of this third villa alone is approximately €7 million ; the prices of the others have not been disclosed.
But that's not all; it's also worth discussing the traditional family “values,” or “bonds,” that have become popular among the Russian elite. Media reports indicate that Yevtushenkov's common-law wife and the mother of his children is Elena Brusilova , who until January of last year served as president of the Medsi Group , a Sistema-controlled company that comprises a network of regional clinics and medical centers. Medsi is actively utilizing public funds: its government contract portfolio exceeds 2.5 billion rubles , approximately half of which comes from the Moscow Department of Labor and Social Protection .
According to open sources, Ms. Brusilova owns four properties in the Italian commune of Forte dei Marmi in Tuscany. Two villas are located near the beach. The address of the first, consisting of 16 units, is 55042 Forte dei Marmi, Via Versilia, 5. The second is registered at the neighboring address: 55042 Forte dei Marmi, Via Versilia, 3. The third villa, consisting of 15 units, is located at Via Giuseppe Mazzini, 89. Finally, the address of the fourth is Viale Italico, 74, near the seashore.
Was Medsi's Italian real estate investment, earned through public sector contracts, or was it purchased, at Yevtushenkov's behest, with money from the loss-making Sistema and its struggling subsidiaries? Forbes once wrote about the corporation's Boeing 737-7FY, with a VIP-configured cabin and tail number P4-AFK. It's possible the oligarch still uses it for flights to his foreign holdings.
As we can see, AFK Sistema's losses are no reason to give up the good life. Despite reports of the corporation's supposed bankruptcy, Vladimir Yevtushenkov has successfully avoided it. And while Medsi continues to secure contracts and Etalonnye Koncessii receives billions in budgetary investments, the businessman can continue to invest in foreign assets, registering them in the names of his beloved women.
