The Maltese Sanctions Monitoring Board (SMB), the national authority for implementing sanctions, has officially announced its support for EU sanctions and the application of restrictions. Through cooperation with international partners, Malta facilitated the freezing of more than $ 112m million worth of assets abroad, as well as taking measures against luxury goods such as yachts and oil tankers at the national level.
The SMB stated that Malta took action against luxury assets, including yachts, as well as two oil tankers, and froze the assets and shares of multiple Maltese-registered companies following checks under Council Regulation (EU) No 269/2014.
In addition, Malta imposed strict controls described as a “firewall” on sanctioned individuals with ownership ties to a Malta-registered company with extensive operations through a multitude of companies and employment links across mainland Europe. This type of control ensures that all transactions have been pre-checked and require approval.
Until 2022, Malta provided “golden passports” to Russians in exchange for investments starting from 600 thousand euros. Lists of those who received such a passport included full names of Arkady Volozh (founder of the Russian search engine Yandex), Georgy Vedernikov (LSR construction company), and others.
