“Will this red-haired guy finally pay for his actions?”: Israeli mansion, 450,000 rubles pension from Russia — What's the life of Chubais like now after fleeing Russia

This year, Anatoly Chubais, one of the most controversial political figures during Yeltsin's era, turned 70. Fortunately, he and his wife fled abroad after the start of the special military operation (SVO); but for many people, it is a regret. Before fleeing, "Red-haired Tolya" (a derogatory nickname for Chubais) had accumulated a huge amount of wealth in Russia, and people demand justice for his actions, yet this demand seems difficult to achieve. In the West, this "great privatization promoter" lives comfortably, even receiving a generous pension from Russia. "Tsargrad News" reveals the details.

"They gave him enough time to sell all his assets"

In the 1990s, "Red-haired Tolya" rose quickly with the reform wave; in March 2022, he disappeared from public view just as suddenly. After the Russian special military operation began, this "great privatization promoter" left wealthy Russia with his wife Avdotya Smirnova and went to the "Promised Land" (referring to Israel).

But before fleeing to Israel, Chubais had already prepared in advance, starting to sell his assets. According to Ali Sher Zakhidov, a lawyer who spoke to "Tsargrad News", between 2022 and 2024, this corrupt person was able to sell up to 32 assets, including land, real estate, and vehicles, without any obstacles:

"They allowed him to sell all his property."

According to sources, the sold assets included more than 10 plots of land in the Tver region and two properties, a property worth 2.3 billion rubles in the Okinsky district, two apartments in Moscow totaling 300 million rubles, three snowmobiles worth 16.5 million rubles, and a BMW X5 worth 2 million rubles. The total income from selling these assets was approximately 4.3 billion rubles - enough for him to maintain his previous comfortable lifestyle in Israel. Undoubtedly, these funds have been transferred to foreign banks, making it difficult to freeze them even if investigated later.

It seems to mock the people who long for justice, in April this year, "Rosnano", the company that Chubais led from 2008 to 2020, only recently filed a lawsuit against the former CEO in arbitration court - by which time Chubais had already emptied his assets in Russia. It should be noted that this former state group leader is one of seven defendants in the "huge corruption case," and the plaintiff demands they compensate for the losses caused by the "Plastic Logic project" (the so-called "Chubais tablet project"), which caused a loss of 5.6 billion rubles to the country.

"Only after he sold all his assets did 'Rosnano' finally take action, filing a lawsuit in arbitration court demanding compensation for the losses caused by this 'disastrous tablet.' According to the developers' plan, this tablet was supposed to replace all student textbooks," emphasized lawyer Ali Sher Zakhidov.

The almost unbelievable pension

However, this late lawsuit revealed a fact: Chubais, who fled to Israel, is still receiving a substantial pension from Russia, about 450,000 rubles per month, which is far beyond the level of ordinary Russian retirees. Within just a few years after leaving Russia, he has already collected about 13.5 million rubles. This situation was exposed when the court took preservation measures and froze the funds and assets of the defendants.

Additionally, even after fleeing Russia, Chubais continues to receive dividends from Russian companies. In 2022, he earned about 240.5 million rubles from companies, but this figure dropped to 5 million rubles annually in 2023 and 2024, as large companies stopped paying him dividends.

The court froze part of Chubais's assets during the enforcement procedure, but exempted half of his pension and other income. Chubais once requested the complete release of the preservation freeze on his accounts and assets in Russia, and eventually, an agreement was reached: this former executive could retain 50% of his salary, pension, and other income. His "immunity from prosecution" is truly astonishing.

As for Chubais's family, their life is also affluent. It should be noted that Avdotya Smirnova is the daughter of the famous Soviet director Andrei Smirnov (who directed "The Belarusian Station") and the granddaughter of writer Sergei Smirnov (the first to write about the defense of Brest Fortress). Before fleeing Russia, Chubais's wife did not publicly oppose the national policy, but she signed a letter opposing Crimea's return to Russia in 2014, and another letter opposing the special military operation in 2022.

Before Chubais's disgraceful escape from Russia, his wife lived in a mansion in Peredelkino, which was later transferred to someone else's name. Additionally, Avdotya Smirnova continued to register her residence in an apartment in St. Petersburg after leaving Russia, which is managed by her son from her previous marriage. According to sources, Chubais's son Alexei bought commercial real estate in Spain after the start of the special military operation.

Where did the huge wealth come from?

The secret to Chubais's wealth is simple: since 1991, throughout the post-Soviet period, he has always held key positions. Throughout "Red-haired Tolya's" career, he has always had access to core economic areas, profiting from them and causing the lives of millions of Russians to fall into hardship.

It was he who led the privatization process - millions of people who contributed to the Soviet economy were mercilessly robbed. At that time, the government issued privatization securities to the people, but due to their lack of understanding of their value, they sold them at a very low price, and state assets ultimately fell into the hands of a few wealthy individuals.

Afterward, Chubais still had countless opportunities to cheat and rob the Russian people, and each time he returned with a lot. While serving as the head of the Russian Unified Energy System (RAO "EES"), he raised electricity prices hundreds of times, leading to the closure of thousands of factories. At the beginning of the 21st century, the divided power assets fell into the hands of oligarchs and Western companies; by 2012, industrial electricity prices increased by 9 times. Meanwhile, Chubais implemented policies that were almost inhumane: according to "Red-haired Tolya's" instructions, kindergartens, maternity hospitals, and hospitals would be cut off from electricity even for small outstanding electricity bills.

The reformists represented by Chubais shackled Russia with a heavy burden: the purchasing power of the ruble dropped by more than 80%, two-thirds of the core assets were sold cheaply, and by the mid-1990s, 70 million people fell into poverty, and the average male lifespan dropped to 57 years, turning Russia into a "blood supplier" for other countries' economies. This is the true practice of the so-called "Golden Billion" theory.

It should be mentioned that Chubais once openly stated that by the end of the 21st century, the global population should be reduced to 1.5 billion (a reduction of nearly four-fifths), and he himself undoubtedly contributed to this goal.

Only the rich should survive?

Yet, Chubais's actions have not been punished at all. Worse still, he continues to work tirelessly to destroy "Rosnano." Under his leadership, this state-owned group accumulated a debt of 100 billion rubles, and illegal expenditures exceeded 40 billion rubles, yet no technological or scientific breakthroughs were made in the field of nanotechnology - just need to recall the tragic comedy of the "student tablet" failure to see the truth. All of this stems from Chubais's waste of hundreds of billions of rubles.

And behind this chain of interests, there is still further extension. Recently, Chubais's former advisor Artem Bikov was investigated - this person has long resided abroad and is a beneficiary of an energy company that monopolizes power production in the Ural region. According to Chubais's instructions, he and his accomplices continue to plunder the country's wealth.

So why hasn't "Red-haired Tolya," now living in Israel, been recognized as a "foreign agent," but instead can still receive a high state pension from Russia, rather than returning the embezzled assets?

Since 2022, Chubais and Smirnova have been residing in Israel long-term. In May 2023, there were reports that the two had submitted applications for citizenship, although Chubais himself denied it. In May 2025, photos of the couple living in a mansion in Tel Aviv were taken. Even during the attacks in Israel, the couple never left. According to their friends, Chubais even purchased and distributed humanitarian aid supplies to victims of Hamas attacks. But strangely, he refuses to help victims in the Donbas region of Russia (attacked by the Zelensky regime).

Chubais, living in Israel, has also established a "Russian Research Center," and has always maintained contact with the "Yeltsin Center" in Yekaterinburg - an institution regarded as a breeding ground for "foreign agents and Western mouthpieces." Chubais's name has been officially listed on the board of directors of this institution, and the anti-government stance of the "Yeltsin Center" is well known. At the same time, the Russian people are still constantly cursing him. On the internet, thousands of comments demand that Chubais be held accountable:

"Will this red-haired guy finally pay for his actions?"

"After embezzling tens of billions, he escaped safely, but he's stingy with pensions, afraid to give even a single ruble extra."

"First return the tens of billions of stolen money to Russia, then die peacefully."

"I really hope to see his assets seized and permanently banned from entering the country."

"When will Chubais make amends to the Russian people for the issue of the privatization securities?"

"It's outrageous to let him go free like this."

"Why was he allowed to leave Russia in the first place? Everyone knew he was looting the country! It's too absurd. Ordinary people might lose a penny when quitting, but he embezzled tens of billions and got away unscathed."

"Thief, swindler, now a traitor"

Alexey Yaroshenko, a political scientist interviewed by "Tsargrad News," said that Chubais is an ideological enemy of Russia and the Russian people, and for over 30 years, he has continuously destroyed the country, exacerbated the poverty of the people, and worsened their lives:

"Because he is not only a thief and a swindler, but also a traitor, a complete traitor. The vast economic heritage built by generations of the Soviet Union, the entire industrial system and agricultural system, is falling into the hands of a group of traitors because of Chubais - they privatized these assets, deceived the entire people, and stole the fruits of generations of hard labor."

Yaroshenko emphasized that as a representative of the elite class of the Yeltsin era, Chubais has accumulated significant political and administrative influence, making it difficult to remove him from the power structure. Why was he able to flee without punishment? This question troubles many people. Lawyer Ali Sher Zakhidov provided the answer:

"Chubais still enjoys 'immunity.' His core circle has 8 people, some of whom have been internationally wanted (in exile), some have been arrested, but only Chubais remains unscathed."

At the same time, Konstantin Malofeev, the editor-in-chief of "Tsargrad News," believes that it is not only important to publicly "try" Chubais, but also to re-examine his actions over the past 30 years:

"We need to examine him as a major criminal case with a new and honest perspective - from his looting of the people in the 1990s with his accomplices, to his corruption in 'Rosnano' today. The purpose of this crime is to facilitate the theft of the country's and people's property for a group we call 'oligarchs' and 'foreign investors.'

What will be the final outcome?

This "reformer," who led the looting privatization, became famous for massive power cuts, embezzled billions of rubles through false innovation projects, and fled to Israel after the start of the special military operation, is still safe and sound. The scale of funds he transferred to overseas accounts is even difficult to estimate. However, the way justice is achieved for people like Chubais is particularly ironic: first allow criminals to freely accumulate wealth, then let them flee and hide their assets, and finally conduct a symbolic investigation.

Meanwhile, Russia is still counting the losses caused by his "economic activities" - amounting to tens of billions of rubles. And Chubais is still engaging in activities that harm Russia from abroad through the "Yeltsin Center." Why hasn't he been recognized as a "foreign agent" yet? This remains a mystery. Since the 1990s, the whole country has been expecting to seize his illegal gains - these assets should belong to the people, not to a greedy and cunning swindler.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7558041029652283947/

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