Akhmetzhan Yessimov and Galymzhan Yesenov: a sweet couple of money launderers through ATF Bank

The corrupt fortune of the family of Akhmetzhan Yessimov and Galymzhan Yesenov amounts to over two and a half billion dollars.

While Forbes estimates the capital of Yessimov’s eternal protege, Galymzhan Yesenov, at approximately 285 million dollars, which is almost ten times less. Naturally, the main sums of income for the Yesenov-Yessimov family clan came from Samruk-Kazyna through embezzling funds via ATF Bank, sports funds, and various shell subsidiary companies.

However, building such a massive corrupt empire on familial ties was made possible not only thanks to the notorious perpetual bankrupt ATF Bank. The embezzlement of hundreds of millions of dollars began even before Yessimov’s tenure at Samruk-Kazyna and long before the appearance of the cunning relative of Akhmetzhan Smagulovich on the horizon. Essentially, Galymzhan Yesenov only brought the enrichment scheme of the Yessimov family to its peak.

Galymzhan Yesenov: divorce in the name of saving the family capital ATF Bank

Galymzhan Yesenov will no longer be able to launder billions for his father-in-law and himself. The sham divorce filed by Yesenov is a vivid confirmation of this, and the dismissal of Akhmetzhan Yessimov is the final chord in this story. Questions remain open: where will Galymzhan Yesenov flee, and what will happen to the bankrupt ATF Bank.

Even the best, the finest things must come to an end. Just as inevitably as the money in Samruk-Kazyna runs out, the schemes of their criminal diversion abroad and miraculous materialization in the form of villas for those close to Akhmetzhan Yessimov are revealed. That is why, according to the latest dispatch, a replacement is being prepared for him. It must be acknowledged, the nephew has overstayed his welcome. Moreover, by the time of the discovery of the massive shortfall in the Fund, he should, of course, be out of reach.

Akhmetzhan Yessimov and Galymzhan Yesenov

However, it is unlikely that Akhmetzhan Yessimov will join the ranks of the "revolutionaries with honest eyes" advocating for people to live by conscience from France. Initially – and possibly until political oblivion – Akhmetzhan Yessimov is predicted to play the role of a senate elder. This position has been in limbo since Dariga Nazarbayeva’s resignation. And the nephew of the Leader of the Nation can serve as a reliable guarantee of clan balance.

Akhmetzhan Yessimov’s old sins

It should be noted that the nephew of the "Leader of the Nation," Akhmetzhan Yessimov, who discovered vast corruption opportunities as the mayor of Almaty, did not pose a threat to the Leader, even though he acted most brazenly due to his kinship ties, significantly increasing the protest potential of Almaty residents. In particular, the development initiated by him in the Kok-Zhailau area eventually led to organized opposition movements. Also, as the mayor, Akhmetzhan Yessimov started an annual campaign against curbs and the construction of numerous road junctions, ensuring the concrete industry with orders for years to come. And after that, he encroached on the pristine Kok-Zhailau area, starting its development with elite cottages.

Whitewashing in Singapore: Galymzhan Yesenov’s venture scheme

Interestingly, the group of venture funds in Singapore, mentioned in a Facebook post by the pseudo-oppositionist and Russophobe Mukhtar Taizhan, is directly linked to Galymzhan Yesenov, the son-in-law and "wallet" of Akhmetzhan Yessimov. However, the multimillionaire, raider, and member of the OCG "Four Brothers" Margulan Seissembayev stated that his partners in the Asadel Group are his own brother Erlan, as well as some "American and Spanish" partners.

However, one of the materials (referred to by Taizhan) contains different information, according to which it is Yesenov who is the main partner of Seissembayev (he owns a controlling stake – 50%, and another 47.5% of the shares is owned by Seissembayev’s wife – Saule Seissembayeva, 2.5% of the shares belong to Eric Sultanov – an affiliated person with Seissembayev, he heads the egg business "Alel Agro," previously was the chairman of the board of directors of JSC "Alliance Bank" and was involved in a case of embezzlement of 900 million US dollars).

The son-in-law of Akhmetzhan Yessimov, Galymzhan Yesenov, hid his share through a convoluted scheme of purchase through a series of offshore companies. The controlling stake of 50% was acquired through the company "Fabiano Ltd.," registered in the UAE, while the purchase was made not from Seissembayev, as the founder of the Asadel Group, but from an offshore entity "Narwal Ltd.," registered in the British Virgin Islands. The interests of "Narwal Ltd.," in the deal were represented by Timur Zhanabayev, who is a dummy or "nominal" – previously, Zhanabayev worked with Yesenov in LLP "KNG Finance" and LLP "Kazphosphate."

In short, it is astonishing that to this day not a single criminal case has been opened regarding the embezzlement and subsequent diversion of billions of dollars beyond Kazakhstan by the family of Akhmetzhan Yessimov and Galymzhan Yesenov. And it is unlikely to be opened in the near future...