Former Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich has been told he must donate the more than £2.5bn he received from the club’s sale three years ago to humanitarian causes or face court action.
In March 2022, Russian billionaire Abramovich announced that he was selling the club after being sanctioned by the UK government, and pledged to donate the proceeds to a new foundation set up to help victims of the war in Ukraine.
The money, which could create the second wealthiest charitable foundation in Britain, remains frozen in a UK bank account.
However, after vowing to “double down” on efforts to release the funds earlier in the year, the government this week issued Abramovich a licence, which stipulates that a foundation must be established to transfer all the proceeds to humanitarian causes in Ukraine.
The government said it will consider any proposal from Abramovich to donate £2.5bn voluntarily to the most vulnerable in Ukraine but warned that it was prepared to take the billionaire to court if the funds are not released quickly.
While the £2.5bn must be spent in Ukraine, under the terms of the licence, any future gains earned by the foundation can be spent more broadly on victims of conflict worldwide.
The government’s licence forbids any relevant money from being spent on benefitting Abramovich or other sanctioned individuals.
Bond: ‘No time to waste’
Foreign secretary Yvette Cooper said: “This money was promised to Ukraine over three years ago.
“It is time Roman Abramovich does the right thing, but if he won’t, we will act. That’s why the licence has been issued.”
Romilly Greenhill, chief executive of NGO umbrella body Bond, said: “We welcome the government’s decision to issue a licence which could finally allow for the release of funds from the sale of Chelsea FC into a new foundation for humanitarian causes.
“Now, it is vital that this licence allows funds to rapidly reach all those around the world impacted by war in Ukraine.
“Each day this money sits unused is a day that people living amid conflict face threats to their safety, security and wellbeing.
“After more than three years of delays, the government has a genuine opportunity to deliver what others have failed to achieve. There is no further time to waste in urgently transferring this money to help people whose lives have been wrecked by conflict.”
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