Billionaire serial entrepreneur Tinkov has renounced his Russian citizenship, saying he does not want to be associated with “fascism” or people who collaborate with “killers”.
Tinkov, whose upstart digital credit card company, TCS Group Holding (TCSq.L), grew to become one of Russia’s largest financial institutions, has been an outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine invasion.
In an Instagram post on Tuesday, the 54-year-old founder of Tinkoff Bank said the decision was based on the invasion of independent Ukraine.
Tinkov claimed an original Instagram post published on Monday, with a picture of a certificate renouncing his citizenship as of Oct 26, had ‘mysteriously disappeared’ blaming it in Kremlin’s trolls.
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The billionaire banker also said that he was suing to force the bank to stop using his name.
He said: “My post of yesterday has mysteriously disappeared. Must be Kremlin’s trolls..
Reiterating: I have decided to throw out Russian citizenship after Russia invades Ukraine, and start killing innocents there.
“I can’t be associated with Putin’s fascism regime. Moreover, I am engaging lawyers to start revoking Tinkoff brand from the bank.
“I hate when my brand/name is associated with the bank that collaborates with killers and blood. Tinkoff Bank must change the name as Oliver Hughes and Stanislav Bliznuyk were telling me and the public, after they “agreed this with Kremlin government” and kick me out of the bank in March. What changed?”
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