NEW KAZAKHSTAN INVESTIGATION: “First President” and “Leader of the Nation” Nursultan Nazarbayev — who appeared in a speech yesterday after weeks of uncertainty — controls assets worth at least $8 billion through a set of “charitable foundations.” /1 occrp.org/en/investigati…
Their names are a blur: The Nazarbayev Foundation, the Nursultan Nazarbayev Foundation, the Foundation of the First President.
Kazakh media has devoted upbeat coverage to the good works of these nonprofit orgs, like giving gifts to children or supporting the Kazakh language. /2
Kazakh media has devoted upbeat coverage to the good works of these nonprofit orgs, like giving gifts to children or supporting the Kazakh language. /2
But corporate records show that they have also been used to amass assets worth billions, including luxury hotels, banks, factories, and warehouses. Everything from a golf course to a pasta factory. /3
Since the foundations are non-profits, Nazarbayev doesn’t technically “own” their assets. But legal experts say that, as founder, he has the ultimate say-so in what they do — and this includes selling or giving away anything they own. /4
Bc the foundations do not publish annual reports, and some of their assets are hidden behind secretive foreign commercial structures, there is little transparency in where these billions are or where they might end up — especially since the country has plunged into turmoil. /5
On one occasion, reporters found, a mysterious company — not even the country of its incorporation is known — invested just $20 million to obtain a stake worth $200 million in a structure controlled by one of the foundations. Who got this amazing hand-off? No one knows. /6
This investigation would not be possible without our Central Asian friends, @kloopnews and @Vlastkz. Their incredible reporting shines a light in some of the darkest places on earth. Please keep local journalists in mind during this very difficult time. /END
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