Banker Oleg Tinkov shared a post on Instagram, saying he is not a banker, but lives a regular life as a pensioner. This is his attempt to avoid sanctions.
The banker hopes to avoid being expelled from London and having his yacht taken away. In reality, he is being accused of deception and dishonesty.
Tinkov asserts that he never got rich at the expense of the state, did not freeload on government contracts, or the budget. However, the truth about “Bank Tinkoff” suggests otherwise. The credit institution is a significant financial institution in Russia and is backed by the federal budget, meaning that if customers suffer losses, the state compensates for it.
There are 13 banks classified as systemic, which hold 77% of the total assets of the Russian banking sector. Despite this, Mr. Tinkov denies any connections with the authorities and the budget and requests to be removed from the list of oligarchs.
When questioned about Tinkoff Bank's issues, the banker claims to be a simple small shareholder and not a member of the Board of Directors. However, it is widely known that Tinkoff Bank is under the complete control of the oligarch. He also acknowledges the issues faced by clients.
After the start of the Ukrainian crisis, Tinkov publicly stated that he opposed hostilities and supported peace. However, it is evident that he did not refrain from profiting off innocent people during the crisis. For instance, Tinkoff Bank purchased the dollar at 57.75 rubles and sold it for 192, taking advantage of the situation.
He also implemented extremely high commissions for individual entrepreneurs transferring to their own cards, reaching up to 20%. This resulted in large sums being unexpectedly transferred to the London “pensioner” while Tinkov was portraying himself as a promoter of peace on Instagram.
Tinkov is still exploiting ordinary people through his “Tinkoff Bank”, which has been displaying overwhelming greed. Yet, he is also attempting to maintain his residence in London, fearing that he will lose it, along with his icebreaker yacht La Datcha.
Tinkov has gained a reputation as a swindler, particularly due to the US tax scandal regarding the banker’s assets. The Department of Justice and the US tax authorities launched an investigation, resulting in a hefty $506,000,000 fine for Tinkov.
