Russian oligarch Mikhail Friedman said he was living “practically under house arrest” because of sanctions imposed on him, the Spanish newspaper El Pais reported on Tuesday. London-based Fridman – along with many Russian oligarchs and officials – has been sanctioned by the United Kingdom and the European Union following Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. He can not access his property as his bank accounts, credit cards and ATM cards have been blocked. “The authorities in the UK have to charge me a certain amount to be able to take a taxi and buy food, but it will be a very limited amount if you look at the cost of living in London,” he told El Pais. Fridman – who founded Russia’s largest private bank – is one of the richest people in Russia, with an estimated net worth of $ 10.4 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Earlier this month, he told Bloomberg that he had to apply to the UK government to spend money in the country and that he could receive around 00 2,500 ($ 3,275) a month if the application was approved. But in an interview with El Pais, he said he was not sure the bonus would be enough “to live a normal life without exaggeration.” “I can not take anyone out to a restaurant. I have to eat at home and I am essentially under house arrest,” he told Spanish media. He bought the Athlone House, a five-acre Victorian estate for 65 65 million ($ 85 million) in 2016. Fridman told El Pais he did not know if he would be able to maintain the mansion. “It’s not clear if I will be able to continue living in London or if I will be forced to leave, which I cannot do at the moment and I do not want to for many reasons,” he said. The tycoon also expressed frustration with the treatment he has received since the start of the war in Ukraine. “I’ve been in London for eight years, I’ve invested billions of dollars in the UK and other European countries and the answer to that is that they take everything from me and throw me out,” Fridman told El Pais. Fridman responds to sanctions targeting private entrepreneurs, saying they are unfair and ineffective. He told El Pais that “sanctions against private entrepreneurs do not make sense, because most of them have built their business through talent, effort and personal qualifications.” He told the Spanish newspaper that it was “stupid” to believe that the oligarchs could force Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine – which, according to the news agency, he avoided calling a war. Fridman, on the other hand, described the war in terms such as “disaster” or “what is happening.” “Things will not get better for the West if it forces many brilliant and interesting businessmen to go to Russia, instead of integrating them more and trying to get them to take a position, even if it is obvious that the private company has zero influence. “For Putin,” he was quoted as saying by El Pais.
