The head of Rosfinmonitoring, Chikhanchin, briefed the president on a criminal group that embezzled 100 million rubles by fabricating fake participant lists for the Pushkin Map project. The transcript of the meeting was published on the Kremlin website, presenting a rare glimpse into how fraud risks are discussed at the highest level of government.
Chikhanchin described a scenario where a budget allocation inevitably attracts wrongdoing. The Pushkin Map initiative was launched with a noble aim to promote cultural engagement but soon faced the emergence of criminal elements that produced extra, fictitious lists of beneficiaries who supposedly deserved support. In reality, no such recipients existed. The president pressed for clarity asking if the problem could be likened to a case of dead souls before receiving confirmation that indeed, dead souls existed in the records.
According to Chikhanchin, law enforcement agencies including the FSB had already intervened and arrests were made. He noted that the situation bore similarities to the earlier tourist reimbursement fraud and emphasized that the criminal network exploited the program for illicit gain. The Pushkin Card system, designed to grant young people ages 14 to 22 free access to theatres, museums and concert halls across Russia, works through a plastic card valued at five thousand rubles. The program began on September 1, 2021, with the aim of enriching cultural life while supporting the youth sector.
By the end of 2022, discussions about the theft surrounding Pushkin Cards intensified. Alexander Khinshtein, who chairs a committee in the State Duma focused on information policy, reported a fraud case in Samara connected to the program. Investigators detained the perpetrators and estimated the damage at around 15 million rubles. Reports also indicated that the criminals organized a venue called the New Time Theater and used the program to generate demand. Investigators claimed that ticket sales in the theater allegedly reached full capacity, with ticket prices around three thousand rubles, yet the scheme allegedly involved the theaters collecting ticket revenue through student Pushkin Cards while returning a portion of the proceeds to the students, effectively siphoning funds from the program through misappropriation of the cards.
shadow sector
Chikhanchin drew attention to the growing use of cryptocurrency in illicit activities. He cited cases of funds flowing from the crypto markets to support extremist and terrorist operations based abroad. The official noted a significant return of assets from the shadow financial sector during the year and pointed to more than one hundred criminal cases opened for related violations. He described a pattern in which the real beneficiaries and owners of illicit schemes were often located outside the country, naming citizens from Ukraine, Latvia, the United Kingdom, Bulgaria and other nations. In addition, he mentioned that authorities had closed eleven financial pyramids and were actively pursuing more than sixty associated criminal cases.
tour scammers
Reports from RBC in May 2022 disclosed a fraud scheme tied to traveler refunds. Travel agents allegedly arranged fictitious trips for extras and then claimed refunds from the government. The disclosure included guidance from Rosfinmonitoring sent to banks to help prevent such crimes. The tourist refund program, which had been in place since August 2020, was established to support the Russian tourism industry during the COVID-19 pandemic. It facilitates the transfer of government reimbursements to Mir cards when paying for domestic travel, provided certain conditions are met.
A Rosfinmonitoring representative later told RBC that the service operates with a continued focus on assessing potential risks across all government support programs, including the tourist refund program. The ministry clarified in its notes that participants may include travel agents as well as individual customers or employees connected to these businesses and to their owners or management, underscoring the broad reach of oversight and the ongoing effort to curb misuse of public funds.