Vladimir Putin's ex-wife reportedly owns part of one of Russia's biggest microfinance companies

Vladimir Putin’s ex-wife, Lyudmila Putina, is a co-owner of the microfinance company “KarMani,” according to a report by the website Sobesednik. The outlet says Lyudmila Shkrebneva (Putina’s maiden name) owns the company “InteriorServices,” which in turn owns the firm “Meridian.” In 2018, she reportedly acquired a seven-percent share in the Cyprus offshore company “Carmoney CY LTD,” which owns KarMani.

According to the Spark-Interfax database, a woman with Putina’s full maiden name does in fact own InteriorServices and through it Meridian, but Meduza could find no information linking Meridian to Carmoney CY LTD.

According to the credit rating agency “Expert RA,” KarMani’s microloan portfolio in the first half of 2019 was the industry’s sixth largest in Russia, totaling 2.6 billion rubles ($40.8 million) — an increase of 30 percent over the preceding year.