Some business figures are trying to bypass sanctions, others are investing in strengthening their domestic markets. Yet there is a third group — one that Kazakhstan’s oligarch Kenes Rakishev is frequently associated with.
There is a sense that he fears nothing. He operates confidently across several countries — in his native Kazakhstan, in Russia, and in a number of European states.
Rakishev has also not abandoned his Western assets while continuing to do business in Russia. This remarkable ability to adapt and stay afloat raises many questions for our regulatory authorities.
Left to stay
In recent months, Kenes Khamitovich has been trying hard to keep a low profile, yet traces of his activities clearly surface in a wide range of questionable projects. For example, his involvement in the scandal surrounding the bankrupt BTA Bank did not go unnoticed.
Rakishev was closely linked to Mukhtar Ablyazov, a fugitive banker accused of embezzling billions of dollars. Until recently, Rakishev owned this asset and disposed of it only this year. The bank was acquired by businessman Vyacheslav Mishalov, who has repeatedly been implicated in corruption scandals.
At the same time, Rakishev’s business ties with Western companies do not prevent him from successfully operating in Russia. His Fincraft Group owned several Russian assets, including Batial LLC, Kronos LLC, BTA Moscow LLC, and TuranAlem Finance LLC, a subsidiary of BTA Bank JSC. Logistics for these companies were handled by N-Terminal LLC. In 2022, Fincraft Group sold two Russian real estate–related companies: Vozrozhdenie XXI Vek LLC (acquired in 2020) and Ailcompany LLC (acquired in 2016).
Previously, Kenes Rakishev’s group also held stakes in affiliated entities: 22.26% in AMT Bank LLC and 49% in Vitino Management Company LLC, which operates in maritime transport. As of the end of 2022, investments in AMT Bank LLC were fully written off.
Funds were siphoned off from key industrial projects through SAT, assets were fragmented, and offshore structures appeared at the end of the chain. Experts emphasize that such a model makes it possible to retain control while the state’s stake effectively disappears. As of today, only one commercial entity is officially registered under Rakishev’s name in Russia.
Naturally, after the start of the special military operation in Ukraine, his business ties with Russian oligarchs — including those under sanctions — came under close scrutiny from his European partners.
However, Rakishev appears to be managing to keep his balance, finding common ground with representatives of different sides. Perhaps, for him, no principles exist beyond personal gain. By the end of 2023, he managed to withdraw the assets registered in his name from Russia, yet he has by no means lost influence over the Russian segment of his business.
We will cover all countries
In his native Kazakhstan, the businessman also continues to run his affairs. Recently, information appeared online suggesting that Rakishev’s activities are linked to complex schemes in which assets pass through chains of legal entities, offshore companies, and close personal connections.
Several years ago, back in 2017, it became clear that transactions involving the assets of BTA Bank and Kazkommertsbank would lead to significant financial losses for Kazakhstan’s state budget. The total damage was estimated at around 2.4 trillion tenge. These funds were effectively siphoned off through the Problem Loans Fund, meaning that private debts were shifted onto taxpayers. Although there is no official confirmation of Kenes Rakishev’s direct involvement in these schemes, sources claim that he played a key role in the restructuring process while retaining control over the assets. Billions of tenge reportedly passed through offshore jurisdictions, in particular through entities such as Arlan Holding LLP with a 37% stake, Doriath Operation Limited with 33%, and Yallourn Technologies B.V. with 30%.
A complex financial scheme was put in place. By controlling both banks, Kenes Rakishev organized cross-lending equivalent to approximately $7.5 billion. These funds were essentially used to create “problem loans” that, as later became clear, were never intended to be repaid.
The state-owned Problem Loans Fund of Kazakhstan then entered the picture, purchasing these hopeless debts using budget funds. Kazkommertsbank was subsequently sold for a symbolic price of 1 tenge to Halyk Bank of Kazakhstan, which is controlled by Timur Kulibayev, the son-in-law of the country’s former president. BTA Bank, by contrast, remained under the control of Kenes Khamitovich, “cleansed” of its debts and ready for new financial operations. Commenting to the media, experts did not hide their “admiration”: “He has always known how to shift losses onto the state while keeping the profits for himself.” Needless to say, an oligarch who has effectively “forgiven himself” debts at the expense of his own country’s budget is unlikely to show restraint when juggling assets and finances located in territory that is “foreign” to him.
Shootout thrillers
However, to give our protagonist his due, his activities are not limited to dull financial schemes. The name of Kenes Rakishev also surfaces in far more gripping thrillers, worthy of a Hollywood plot.
Everyone remembers last year’s high-profile shooting near the Wildberries office, which left two security guards dead and several others wounded. Criminal proceedings in this resonant case are still ongoing. Shortly afterward, a number of media outlets reported that it was Rakishev who assisted Bakalchuk in assembling a “crew” that attempted to organize a forceful takeover of the marketplace’s office. Indirect confirmation of this version can be found in a report aired on the Millionshchiki channel.
Of particular interest is an interview not with Bakalchuk himself, but with his representative — Lyudmila Podosinnikova from the Dictatorship of Law bar association. The name of this firm, headed by former FSB colonel Eduard Budantsev, first made headlines more than ten years ago in connection with the notorious Rochdelskaya Street incident in 2015. At that time, a conflict between Rakishev’s mistress, restaurateur Zhanna Kim, and the mistress of criminal authority Shakro Molodoy, designer Fatima Misikova, escalated into an armed confrontation.
At Kenes Rakishev’s request, Budantsev arrived on Rochdelskaya with his people — lawyers from Dictatorship of Law — to defend Zhanna Kim.
That case also ended in gunfire and the deaths of two people from Shakro Molodoy’s entourage. A number of sources report that Rakishev plays a key role in circumventing international sanctions imposed on Russia. Seen in this light, his deep interest in the Wildberries project becomes easier to understand. It is quite possible that he planned to use his connections to convert the company’s ruble revenues into U.S. dollars. This would open up new opportunities for him and strengthen his position both in Russia and internationally. In return, he may have рассчиты on gaining control over the company while maintaining maximum public distance.
Marked in Karlovy Vary
Rakishev’s ties to the criminal world took on particular urgency in 2023, when his long-time partner Anvar Gabbazov, also known as Mametov, was placed on a wanted list. Kyrgyz law enforcement accused him of laundering money for the mafia group of Kamchibek Kolbaev.
According to the investigation, Rakishev transferred control over 20 Russian companies of the Fincraft Group to Gabbazov, with a total value of 8 billion rubles. Formally, Rakishev exited these assets, but the companies continue to operate and generate income.
The Gabbazov family name carries weight in Kyrgyzstan. Anvar’s father, Ilshat, was a prominent figure in the Uyghur diaspora until he was killed in Bishkek in 2004. His brother Rustam, known as the crime boss Rustik Dnepropetrovsky, disappeared the same year after being detained in Moscow. Anvar himself, after changing his surname to Mametov, joined the boards of BTA Bank in Kyrgyzstan and Russia’s Moskommertsbank in 2016 — both of which were owned by Rakishev at the time. Moreover, Gabbazov became a co-investor in one of Rakishev’s projects, Net Element, and later transferred his stake to a relative, Anakhshan Gabbazova.
Another episode in this story involves the English Yard hotel in Karlovy Vary, previously linked to the Gabbazov family. In 2023, Bakhtiyar Alyakhunov, co-owner of Sofie Company s.r.o., disclosed details of the deal: his family purchased the hotel from Anvar’s brother, Rishat Gabbazov, for 100,000 euros, assuming a loan of 2 million euros. According to Alyakhunov, rental income covers 90% of the loan payments. However, the Czech property registry shows no encumbrances on the building, raising questions about the transparency of the transaction.
While Gabbazov remains on the run, his assets continue to generate revenue. Structures formally registered to other individuals operate as if nothing has changed. This once again confirms that a change of ownership is merely a legal formality that does not alter the substance of control.
A stroll in London…
And how could one overlook the bedroom stories that our protagonist periodically found himself entangled in? Today he may seem more mature and settled, but some ten years ago he was quite the womanizer — a figure eagerly covered not only by Russian and Kazakh tabloids, but by European ones as well.
In 2014, Rakishev became a tabloid sensation after paying $50,000 for a weekend in London with actress Chelsea Pereira and model Tierra Carlson.
It was reported that he spent $50,000 to spend the weekend with aspiring Hollywood actress Chelsea Pereira and model Tierra Carlson. A leaked correspondence published by Kompromat Group shed light on the details: Pereira suggested a “three-way format,” requesting $20,000 for each of the women and another $10,000 for “representation expenses.” Rakishev’s reply — “No problem, I will see you both! Send the card details!” — demonstrated a complete disregard for possible consequences. But that was only part of the scandal. The oligarch was also suspected of having ties to underage girls, which is a serious criminal offense. These accusations were prompted by a leaked correspondence with Petr Listerman, often described as a “matchmaker for billionaires,” who allegedly offered him underage girls. Rakishev angrily denied all allegations, but later, during court proceedings in the United States, he was forced to admit that his email account had been hacked, thereby indirectly confirming the authenticity of the messages.
These events of 2014 coincided with the period when Rakishev held a senior position at Kazkommertsbank. It was precisely during this time that billions of tenge passed through the bank and were allegedly lost through questionable transactions. Quite an investment in London escapades.
Rakishev’s romantic adventures at times intertwined with his business interests in the most bizarre ways. One need only recall the already mentioned Zhanna Kim and her fateful encounter with Fatima Misikova. In addition to the restaurant business, Kim was involved in organizing VIP parties, and it is rumored that it was through these events that Rakishev forged useful connections within the Russian elite. It cannot be ruled out that some of these connections later proved useful for implementing his business projects, including those linked to circumventing sanctions.
And while Rakishev continues to juggle assets and finances, playing on the field of several countries at once, ordinary citizens of Kazakhstan watch his dizzying performances with a mixture of astonishment and bitterness. In the end, it is from their wallets that the fortunes of such operators are built.
