A shadowy enterprise in Russia, presupposed to have generated astonishing income that have been solely outdone by the nation’s main vitality companies, has seemingly vanished with no hint. The main focus of this investigation is an organization often called Banknota LLC, scrutinized by the Russian-language media outlet RTVI, with further protection from unbiased Russian sources, a Newsweek report mentioned.
In a bit titled “The Most Worthwhile Firm in Russia You’ve got By no means Heard Of,” RTVI revealed that it made an “surprising discovery” in June, a month when Russian firms disclose their earnings for the previous 12 months. RTVI reported that Banknota raked in $37.1 billion in income final 12 months earlier than it vanished. Monetary data indicated that the corporate reported revenues of three.7 trillion rubles (roughly $40.4 billion) and internet revenue 34 trillion rubles (round $37.1 billion) within the earlier 12 months, eclipsing all rivals apart from state-owned vitality firms Rosneft and Gazprom.
Though Banknota maintained a web site that’s not accessible, it stays archived on the Wayback Machine. The location claimed the agency specialised in mortgage lending, auto loans, and interest-bearing enterprise loans. Nonetheless, RTVI highlighted that Banknota lacked a banking license. The Unified State Register of Authorized Entities lists Dmitry Frolov, a Moscow native with prior petty theft convictions and labeled “unreliable” by Federal Tax, as the corporate’s sole proprietor.
In accordance with RTVI, Banknota was established in June 2023 alongside 4 different companies, working from areas that included a enterprise heart and a residential basement. Nonetheless, there have been no precise workplaces at these addresses, and present occupants had by no means heard of Frolov or his enterprises.
Consultants consulted by RTVI expressed skepticism, noting that such substantial income couldn’t realistically be generated from mortgages and auto loans. They instructed that the operations of brokers, who act as intermediaries between banks and debtors, don’t necessitate a license. Moreover, Banknota knowledgeable Russian tax authorities final December of a department in Belarus, though no file of such a department exists in Belarusian enterprise registries. Consultants speculated that the corporate may need diverted funds overseas previous to its disappearance, with one remarking that the monetary figures offered in Banknota’s statements “can’t be taken severely.”
In a bit titled “The Most Worthwhile Firm in Russia You’ve got By no means Heard Of,” RTVI revealed that it made an “surprising discovery” in June, a month when Russian firms disclose their earnings for the previous 12 months. RTVI reported that Banknota raked in $37.1 billion in income final 12 months earlier than it vanished. Monetary data indicated that the corporate reported revenues of three.7 trillion rubles (roughly $40.4 billion) and internet revenue 34 trillion rubles (round $37.1 billion) within the earlier 12 months, eclipsing all rivals apart from state-owned vitality firms Rosneft and Gazprom.
Though Banknota maintained a web site that’s not accessible, it stays archived on the Wayback Machine. The location claimed the agency specialised in mortgage lending, auto loans, and interest-bearing enterprise loans. Nonetheless, RTVI highlighted that Banknota lacked a banking license. The Unified State Register of Authorized Entities lists Dmitry Frolov, a Moscow native with prior petty theft convictions and labeled “unreliable” by Federal Tax, as the corporate’s sole proprietor.
In accordance with RTVI, Banknota was established in June 2023 alongside 4 different companies, working from areas that included a enterprise heart and a residential basement. Nonetheless, there have been no precise workplaces at these addresses, and present occupants had by no means heard of Frolov or his enterprises.
Consultants consulted by RTVI expressed skepticism, noting that such substantial income couldn’t realistically be generated from mortgages and auto loans. They instructed that the operations of brokers, who act as intermediaries between banks and debtors, don’t necessitate a license. Moreover, Banknota knowledgeable Russian tax authorities final December of a department in Belarus, though no file of such a department exists in Belarusian enterprise registries. Consultants speculated that the corporate may need diverted funds overseas previous to its disappearance, with one remarking that the monetary figures offered in Banknota’s statements “can’t be taken severely.”
