NRT briefing
Documents falsified to evade tax on Abramovich's wealth, BBC finds
Based on reporting by BBC News.
The Brief
A BBC Panorama investigation, conducted with the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, has found that the accountancy firm Deloitte helped falsify documents to hide Roman Abramovich's wealth and evade tax. The investigation drew on leaked documents from MeritServus, a Cypriot corporate services firm formerly owned by Deloitte, covering 1995 to 2022.
The documents show that backdated paperwork made assets such as superyachts, mansions and private jets worth $672m disappear from Abramovich's company accounts. In one example, Deloitte Cyprus signed off on 2003 accounts that omitted these assets after a three-year backdating scheme.
Another scheme involved backdating documents to make it appear a company did not own nearly $2bn, thus avoiding tax on interest income. Barrister Andrew Mitchell KC called the scheme "straightforward" tax evasion. Abramovich's lawyers deny he evaded tax or concealed his fortune, stating there is no evidence he knew about or directed the falsification, and that relying on professional advice was legitimate. Deloitte Cyprus said it acts in compliance with applicable laws.