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Leaked corporate records reviewed by The Guardian, The Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ) and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) suggest that aides and Deloitte Cyprus personnel backdated paperwork involving companies linked to Roman Abramovich, offshore assets and tax or disclosure obligations. The reporting describes allegations, not a final court finding.
The investigations, published on October 12, 2026, cover activity from 1999 to 2013. Abramovich and his associate Eugene Tenenbaum denied wrongdoing; Deloitte Cyprus said it complies with applicable laws. The central question is what the records appear to show—and what they do not establish.
What the investigations say the records show
The Guardian, TBIJ and OCCRP based their October 12, 2026 reports on leaked Cyprus Confidential corporate correspondence and financial records. Their accounts say paperwork was created or backdated so that transfers or arrangements involving Abramovich-linked companies appeared to have happened earlier than they did. The alleged purpose, as described by the outlets, was to reduce exposure to tax or transparency requirements.
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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchThat distinction matters: the reports describe what their journalists inferred from leaked documents. They do not establish through a court ruling that every document was falsified, every proposed arrangement was carried out, or that the reported sums represent tax evaded.
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How the alleged backdating worked
The reports describe documents bearing dates earlier than their apparent creation. If paperwork records an agreement as having been made before a tax or disclosure rule took effect, it can make a later transaction appear to have occurred under an earlier set of rules. The investigations say this kind of paperwork was used in relation to offshore company structures and asset arrangements.
TBIJ says its analysis identified more than 1,000 backdated records involving more than 100 companies between 1999 and 2013. It reports that some document timestamps were as much as five years earlier than the documents’ creation. These are TBIJ’s counts and characterization of the leaked material, not totals established by a court.
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TBIJ also reports that Deloitte later signed off some company accounts as “true and fair,” in some cases relying on documents the firm had helped prepare. Alex Cobham, chief executive of the Tax Justice Network, told TBIJ: “This wasn’t something Deloitte reluctantly went along with. They appear very much to have been part of the design process”. That is Cobham’s assessment of evidence shown to him, not a judicial conclusion.
Two asset arrangements described in the reporting
OCCRP’s review of the leaked material describes two cases with different reported values and different evidentiary limits:
| Case | What OCCRP reported | What is established about implementation |
|---|---|---|
| Kravin account and Sibneft proceeds | OCCRP reported records discussing a plan involving nearly $2 billion in bank deposits connected to proceeds from the sale of Sibneft shares. | OCCRP could not independently confirm that the dividend arrangement was implemented. It noted that Cyprus’s register had no 2003 or 2004 Kravin financial statements. |
| Separate company case | OCCRP reported a separate case involving assets valued at nearly $700 million. | The reporting describes the case in leaked records; it does not establish that every reported plan or transfer was completed. |
The figures are amounts reported by OCCRP from its review of leaked records. They should not be read as court-established sums, or as amounts of tax proven to have been avoided.
Why Cyprus and BVI companies feature
The reporting connects the paperwork to corporate structures in Cyprus and the British Virgin Islands (BVI). OCCRP says the plans followed increased Cypriot tax and transparency requirements for foreign-owned and private firms. TBIJ describes BVI entities as a way to reduce tax exposure and obscure Abramovich’s name. Those explanations are the outlets’ accounts of the structures and their apparent purpose.
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Andrew Mitchell KC, whom the Guardian identified as an expert in financial crime and tax law, characterized the alleged scheme as “a blatant move to protect from legitimate taxation assets which should otherwise have been subject to tax”. His words are an expert’s characterization of the allegations, not a legal ruling.
What Abramovich, Tenenbaum and Deloitte said
Abramovich
Abramovich’s lawyers denied wrongdoing. OCCRP reported their statement that there was no evidence he “participated in, authorised or knew of” plans to prepare, backdate or falsify records. The Guardian also reported that his lawyers said he relied on professional advisers.
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Eugene Tenenbaum
Tenenbaum denied participating in, authorising or knowing of improper backdating and said he relied on specialist advice. TBIJ reported that his lawyers argued a backdated document is not necessarily improper if it records an agreement reached earlier. An independent forensic accountant cited by TBIJ said supporting documentation should not have been backdated if the structures and decisions were not yet in place.
Deloitte Cyprus
Deloitte Cyprus said: “Deloitte Cyprus acts in compliance with applicable laws.” It also said it could no longer access correspondence from more than 20 years ago. OCCRP reported that Deloitte Global did not reply to its questions.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.A separate Jersey investigation
OCCRP also reported a Jersey investigation into suspected money laundering related to proceeds from the Sibneft sale. It is separate from the allegations about backdated corporate paperwork. According to OCCRP, no charges had been brought in that Jersey matter as of October 12, 2026.
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The public reporting relies on leaked records analyzed by investigative outlets, and the named parties dispute or deny wrongdoing. In particular, OCCRP says it could not independently confirm whether the Kravin dividend arrangement was implemented. The documents and reported values therefore support a serious account of alleged conduct, but they do not by themselves prove that every plan went ahead or that tax evasion was judicially established.
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