Russian tycoon Oleg Tinkov says he was punished by Kremlin for Ukraine war stance
- Sanctioned Russian mogul Oleg Tinkov has become one of the Kremlin’s most outspoken critics over the war in Ukraine
- He thanked Russia’s richest man, Vladimir Potanin, for buying his stake in a digital bank for a fraction of what it was once worth
A Russian tycoon, who has urged the West to help end Moscow’s “insane war” in Ukraine, said he had been punished by the Kremlin for his stance.
In an emotional post on Instagram in April, Oleg Tinkov, one of Russia’s best-known self-made tycoons, said that “90 per cent of Russians” were against the Kremlin’s “massacre” in Ukraine.
He attributed the failures of the Russian army to corruption, saying the whole country was trapped in nepotism, toadyism and servility.
Later that month, Tinkov sold his 35 per cent stake in the holding he founded to a company controlled by Kremlin-friendly billionaire Vladimir Potanin. The TCS Group Holding owns Tinkoff Bank, one of Russia’s largest lenders.
In a new post on Instagram on Tuesday, Tinkov, 54, said he had sold his stake for “kopecks”, expressing gratitude to Potanin for rescuing him from “this looming hell”.
“I’ve lost everything but I have not lost my soul,” he said, adding he had also received threats.