Full Breakdown
UK and EU Sanctions on Russian Oligarchs Mikhail Fridman and Petr Aven
5/1/2026, 7:37:45 PM
Core Sanction Actions and Legal Status
Mikhail Fridman, a Russian billionaire, and Petr Aven, former Minister of Foreign Economic Relations, are shareholders of ABH Holding, a banking and financial-services holding company. The United Kingdom placed both men on its Sanctions List in March 2022, citing ABH Holding’s role in a sector the UK deems of strategic significance to the Russian government and their involvement in the Alfa Group banking network. The sanctions freeze assets, bar travel and prohibit financial-service dealings. The European Union also maintains sanctions against them. In April 2024 the EU General Court ruled that the bloc’s restrictive measures were not justified for the period February 2022 to mid-March 2023, but the decision did not lift the broader sanctions.
Background & Context
The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine prompted coordinated sanctions from the United Kingdom, the European Union and other Western states. Sanctions target individuals and entities deemed to support Russia’s war effort, aiming to disrupt financial networks that sustain strategic sectors such as banking and finance. Fridman and Aven’s inclusion reflects the broader policy of restricting oligarchs linked to the Russian financial system. The sanctions regime includes asset freezes, travel bans and prohibitions on providing financial services, and applies to any entities linked to the Russian financial sector. The United Kingdom, the European Union and other Western states have coordinated similar measures to pressure the Russian economy. The coordinated sanctions aim to restrict the ability of designated individuals to conduct cross-border financial transactions.
Official Statements & Responses
The UK government described ABH Holding as “an entity carrying on business in a sector of strategic significance to the Government of Russia, namely the Russian financial services sector.” The statement was part of the rationale for their inclusion on the United Kingdom’s March 2022 sanctions list. The EU General Court’s decision that the sanctions were not justified for the February 2022–mid-March 2023 period indicates that the broader sanctions framework remains in place.
Criticism & Opposition
Fridman has launched multiple legal challenges against European governments over the sanction decisions via the Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism in several jurisdictions.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
The EU General Court found the sanctions unjustified for a specific period, yet both the United Kingdom and the European Union continue to enforce them. The ruling’s narrow temporal scope leaves the status of the sanctions ambiguous for periods beyond mid-March 2023.
Verbatim Quotes
> “entity carrying on business in a sector of strategic significance to the Government of Russia, namely the Russian financial services sector,” — UK Government statement
What’s Next
The ISDS cases filed by Fridman are part of an ongoing legal dispute that currently concerns the sanctions.
