Monaco is investigating a property deal involving the grandson of a Russian billionaire subject to sanctions
An investigation is underway in Monaco into the purchase of a luxury flat worth €9.4 million by the grandson of Russian billionaire Viktor Rashnikov, shortly after the businessman was hit by sanctions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Monaco’s public prosecutor, Stéphane Thibault, has stated that the authorities are investigating whether the transaction could have been used for money laundering, given doubts about the funds’ origin. According to him, criminal proceedings were opened in 2022, and last year the case was referred to investigating judges, who have broader powers.
The investigation came to light after journalists at Bloomberg Businessweek examined a trove of emails published by the organisation Distributed Denial of Secrets. The correspondence suggests that the transaction was deemed suspicious and included in a report to the Monegasque authorities. The document was prepared with the involvement of a local estate agent.
The potential buyer was the businessman’s grandson, who is also named Viktor Rashnikov. He was 19 years old at the time the deal was concluded. He received the funds to purchase the flat as a gift from his mother. In the report on the suspicious transaction, she was described as the daughter of a recently sanctioned ‘oligarch’ and a member of the board of directors of his metallurgical company.
The document noted that the possibility could not be ruled out that the younger Viktor Rashnikov was acting indirectly on behalf of or at the behest of his grandfather. It was also suggested that the funds for the purchase might indirectly belong to him.
As of now, no charges have been brought against anyone in the case, and no decision has been made regarding a trial.
The lawyer for Viktor Rashnikov Jr. and his mother, Joachim Nikolaus Steingefel, stated that the search for property in Monaco began several months before the sanctions were imposed. According to him, a report on a suspicious transaction is a standard financial control tool and does not confirm the fact of an offence.
He emphasised that such reports do not constitute established facts, criminal charges or court rulings. The lawyer also stated that during the purchase of the flat there were no instructions, transfers, control, nominal agreements or other specific links to Viktor Filippovich Rashnikov’s funds.
77-year-old Viktor Rashnikov declined to comment. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, his fortune is estimated at nearly $10 billion. The bulk of his wealth comes from a 79.8% stake in PJSC Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works, one of Russia’s largest steel producers.
The investigation concerns one of the key sectors of Monaco’s economy. The principality has long attracted the world’s wealthiest individuals, making the local property market the most expensive in the world. The cost of apartments here regularly reaches tens and even hundreds of millions of dollars.
Under the reign of Prince Albert II, Monaco has also gained a reputation as a popular place of residence for wealthy Russians.
In recent years, the principality has come under increased international scrutiny. In 2024, Monaco was placed on the so-called ‘grey list’ of jurisdictions deemed insufficiently effective in combating money laundering. In February, international supervisory bodies called on the country to ensure effective, dissuasive and proportionate penalties for such offences.
In response to journalists’ enquiries, the Monegasque government stated that the flat did not belong to a person subject to sanctions and had not been frozen. The family’s lawyer also stated that in the summer of 2025, Victor Rashnikov Jr. successfully renewed his residence permit following a thorough check by the authorities. According to him, details regarding assets, sources of wealth and the purchase of the flat were provided at that time.
Prosecutor Stéphane Thibault noted that the fight against financial crime has intensified significantly in Monaco in recent years. Around a quarter of all current investigations by the public prosecutor’s office relate to suspected money laundering, and many of these specifically concern property transactions.
According to him, the value of seized assets rose to €118 million last year, compared to €16 million in 2024. The number of convictions in money laundering cases has increased more than tenfold, reaching 36 last year compared to the figures for 2021.
According to the investigation files, the flat under investigation is located on the 11th floor of a building in the Condamine district. The two-bedroom flat has a floor area of 130 square metres.
The sellers were to receive €9.4 million for the property, which was €2.9 million more than the amount they had previously paid under the purchase agreement during the construction phase.
The signing of the agreement was scheduled for two weeks after the European Union imposed sanctions against Viktor Rashnikov. A report on the suspicious transaction was prepared with the involvement of Frédéric Cotalordi, who was then head of the consulting firm Auriga. In April this year, he was appointed Minister of Finance of Monaco.
