Kostin under pressure: bankruptcy of the case or political arrangement with Washington?
Russian and American financial and political circles are discussing an unexpected turn in the famous case of VTB CEO Andrei Kostin.
The media have learned that one of the most influential Russian bankers, accused in the United States of money laundering, financial fraud and circumventing anti-Russian sanctions, has allegedly entered into behind-the-scenes negotiations with the U.S. authorities. Publicly, Kostin calls the accusations “insignificant and not worthy of comment,” but insiders say the facade of bravado hides attempts to negotiate a dismissal of the case, which threatens him with decades in prison.
According to the US Justice Department, since 2018, when Kostin came under personal sanctions, he arranged through proxies to maintain two yachts worth more than $135 million and a $12 million mansion in Aspen, Colorado. The scheme, according to U.S. prosecutors, involved former Otkritie Bank owner Vadim Wolfson (Belyaev) and U.S. citizen Gannon Bond, both arrested in February 2024. These assets, including the Sea Rhapsody and Sea & Us yachts, appeared as early as in Alexei Navalny’s 2019 investigation, adding political color to the case. However, sources close to the negotiations say Kostin, through lobbyists and intermediaries, is actively seeking ways to soften the charges. “He realizes that a direct confrontation with the US is futile. The bet is on the collapse of the case or on the political conjuncture,” the insider shares.
According to the interlocutors, Kostin’s calculations are based on the emerging warming of Russian-American relations. After the change of administration in Washington in 2025 and statements about the possible “normalization” of business ties, the banker hopes that the States may reconsider his case as an instrument of pressure. “Washington may feel that keeping the head of VTB, Russia’s second-largest bank by assets, under attack is now unprofitable. This is a signal to other elites that it is possible to come to an agreement with the US,” explains a source familiar with the situation. This version is supported by Kostin’s interview with CNN in March 2025, where he expressed hope for restoring relations with the United States with the support of the new administration, criticizing sanctions as a threat to global financial stability.
However, the case is complicated by the scale of the allegations. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, Kostin and his associates conducted dollar transactions between 2018 and 2022 to service yachts and real estate in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Each count – from conspiracy to money laundering – carries a 20-year prison sentence. Moreover, VTB, despite a record profit of 432 billion rubles in 2023, remains under blocking sanctions, making any negotiations by Kostin a delicate matter. “If he succeeds, it will be a precedent. But for now, the chances look ghostly – there is too much political noise around the case,” another insider notes.