UK Fintech Borrowed from Firm Backed by Tycoon With ‘Concerning Ties’ to Russia
- FCA-regulated Dzing took a loan from Cyprus-registered entity
- Deal highlights challenges in UK’s electronic-money industry
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When Mikhail Nadel, a banker once accused of looting Kyrgyzstan’s biggest lender, wanted help to get his UK payments firm off the ground, he turned to a tycoon with alleged ties to Russian intelligence and organized crime.
Dzing Finance, the fintech managed by Nadel, borrowed €5.3 million ($5.8 million) in 2021 from an entity backed by the family of Oleg Boyko to power its growth. The loan deal came months after the US Senate Intelligence Committee said Boyko had “concerning ties” to the Russian state and criminality. Canada and Australia sanctioned him last year after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, citing his alleged links to the Kremlin.