Some of the first banks that streamed into Crimea after Russia wrested control of the region from Ukraine in 2014 were better known for laundering money than banking.
Five of the banks have questionable histories, including ties to the US$ 20 billion money laundering scandal known as the Russian Laundromat revealed last year by OCCRP. Although most of these banks were small and barely known in Russia, they have grown significantly since arriving in Crimea.
Their presence raises questions about Russia’s commitment to eliminate money laundering, amid concerns that Crimea could become another major international money laundering and organized crime zone like Transnistria, Ossetia and other disputed territories on the Russian border.
