London home 'at centre of $1.2bn sanction-busting electronics sales'

A modest terraced house in north London revealed to be ‘at centre of $1.2bn sanction-busting electronics sales to Russia’

• Laptops, mobile phones and microchips were sent from the property in Enfield
• This was since Vladimir Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine began last year

A terrace house in London was yesterday revealed to be at the heart of a $1.2 billion sanction-busting sales business to Russia.

Financial records appear to show shipments of laptops, mobile phones and microchips have been repeatedly sent from a business registered at the unassuming property in Enfield, North London, since Vladimir Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine began last year.

The exports, made by Mykines Corporation LLP, include brands ranging from Huawei to Intel, Apple and Samsung. Last night, the man who rents the £350,000 two-storey house said he wasn’t even aware the modest property had been used as a business address.

Giving his name as ‘Mickey’, he told The Mail on Sunday: ‘I have been renting this address for around 11 months, so this is a bit of a shock.’

The house is owned by a Cyprus-based entrepreneur and the company at the centre of the scheme is controlled by a 53-year-old Ukrainian man. 

Tech shipments: The modest property in Enfield, North London at the heart of a $1.2 billion sanction-busting sales business to Russia

At least 32 active or inactive companies have been registered at the address, with one even named Russian Trading Company Ltd.

The shipments were discovered by a Madrid-based expert on analysis of customs flows who passed his findings on to the Financial Times.

They show that a large volume of high-end microchips, telecoms equipment and servers, which have the potential to support Russian infrastructure, have been shipped through other countries, largely China, avoiding sanctions. 

According to the FT, Mykines appears to have arranged the sale of about $1.2 billion of electronics into Russia since the invasion of Ukraine.

Records show Mykines is also closely linked to a company called Merlion group, which is one of the largest tech firms in Russia with an annual turnover of more than £4 billion. 

Merlion is owned by three Russian oligarchs who appear in Forbes’ list of 200 wealthiest Russians with a combined net worth of £1.6 billion. Two of them have been sanctioned by Ukraine for ‘material or financial support’ for the war.

Yesterday, a UK Government spokesman said: ‘All businesses registered in the UK are bound by law to comply with the Russia Sanctions regime. We take potential breaches very seriously, but do not discuss the details of how we enforce trade sanctions for specific cases.’

The exports, made by Mykines Corporation LLP, include brands ranging from Huawei to Intel, Apple and Samsung

Source: Read Full Article