2 Russian businessmen linked to Alfa Group win court case over EU sanctions

By SAMUEL PETREQUIN
Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — Russian businessmen Mikhail Fridman and Petr Aven won a court case Wednesday over a European Union decision to sanction the pair for their alleged role in Russia’s war against Ukraine. The EU General Court said a lack of evidence justified their removal from the list of persons submitted to restrictive measures between February 2022 and March 2023. Fridman is a founder of Alfa Group and ranked as one of Russia’s wealthiest tycoons. The group’s Alfa Bank, Russia’s largest nonstate bank, was sanctioned by the EU in March 2022 and Fridman left the board thereafter to try to help the bank skirt sanctions. Aven headed Alfa Bank until March 2022, but like Fridman left the board after EU sanctions.