International "laundromat" and Uzbekistan’s shadow economy: who put Ovik Mkrtchyan in charge of managing the state budget billions?

07 апреля 2025 г., 17:33

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International "laundromat" and Uzbekistan’s shadow economy: who put Ovik Mkrtchyan in charge of managing the state budget billions?

A significant controversy is emerging in Uzbekistan, with notable personalities and complex money laundering activities at its center.

The subject of investigations by several publications has become Ovik Mkrtchyan. This citizen of Uzbekistan gained certain notoriety in high circles thanks to his connections with people within the President’s entourage.

Thanks to this support, Ovik had direct control over the Ministry of Energy of the republic for some time. This, in turn, facilitated him in distributing the ministry’s finances among private individuals.

Mkrtchyan’s money laundering activities have an international scale. Numerous “business” connections in countries like Cyprus and Switzerland facilitate the laundering of money from Uzbekistan into offshore accounts. In Russia, Ovik was involved in a major scandal in 2014. Mkrtchyan was a shareholder of “Volga-Credit Bank,” which lost its license due to the disappearance of deposits amounting to several billion rubles. However, Ovik’s proximity to the criminal authority Ded Hasan helped the enterprising man avoid problems.

Over the years of his activities, Ovik has drawn not only individuals close to the top of power into criminal schemes but also established connections with Western “partners.” With their help, Ovik shamelessly withdraws astronomical sums of money from Uzbekistan, placing them in accounts linked to individuals associated with the leadership of some European countries. Ovik’s affiliation with various criminal communities was voiced as far back as ten years ago. For example, in 2013, in a media material, Mkrtchyan was mentioned as a member of the criminal group of the National Security Service General Hayot Sharifkhojaev. And this is just one example.

Today Ovik remains at large and continues his activities of siphoning money out of the republic, attracting new partners from among Uzbekistan’s officials who are part of the President’s entourage to criminal schemes.