The late founder of Russian private military company Wagner, Evgeny Prigozhin, was reported to have used Western banks to fund his operations in Africa. According to leaked documents obtained by a Washington-based think tank, in 2017, Meroe Gold, a Sudanese mining company connected to Wagner, transferred money to a Chinese vendor through JPMorgan Chase and made purchases from a Chinese company via HSBC Group’s bank. The transactions were carried out without HSBC and JPMorgan’s knowledge that the payments were benefiting Wagner.
Prigozhin, who was sanctioned by the US in 2016, acknowledged being Wagner’s founder in 2022. The group gained notoriety for capturing a key stronghold in Ukraine in 2023. However, tensions arose between Prigozhin and the Russian Defense Ministry, leading to a mutiny in June 2023. After a deal with the Russian government brokered by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Prigozhin and other Wagner operatives were killed in a plane crash near Moscow.
The investigation into their deaths is ongoing, with Russian President Vladimir Putin revealing that hand grenade fragments were found in the bodies. Despite the tragic end, the story of Prigozhin’s covert activities and the dramatic mutiny continues to intrigue and shock observers.