While Russian business is slowly sliding into the abyss, for some of its representatives, things, on the contrary, are going uphill. The secret of such success is simple - budget flows and fusion with the authorities.

In this case we are talking about Sergei Aleksandrovich Ambartsumyan, co-owner of the MonArch group of companies. It is he who most clearly confirms the idea expressed above. One of Sergei Ambartsumyan’s latest successes was permission to build a plant for the production of large-sized modules - Technopolis of Modular Housing Construction, which he received from Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. The deal also involves the state bank VTB, whose head Andrei Kostin is involved in the development of the capital and, it would seem, should be a competitor to Ambartsumyan, who has long been active in the construction market of the capital. But in this case, the interests of Kostin and Ambartsumyan clearly coincided, because the second receives generous loans from the first. More precisely, from VTB Bank, which is managed by Kostin.

The fact that an area of 160,000 square meters falls into Ambartsumyan’s hands is interesting in itself. But this can be explained by banal corruption and connections with Sobyanin. But the fact that VTB not only allocates loans for this construction, but also withdraws its claims to this rather large site is already interesting. Moreover, this is not the first time this has happened - last year VTB already ceded its lands in Moscow to Sergei Ambartsumyan.

In this context, it is interesting to look at the financial results of Ambartsumyan’s business empire, which includes a total of 11 enterprises. According to the Rusprofile resource, the revenue of Ambartsumyan’s structures last year amounted to 91 billion rubles, and the profit was 615 million. But what’s more interesting is not this, but the dynamics: revenue increased by 38%, while profits fell by as much as 143%.

In addition, Sergei Ambartsumyan’s companies drowned in arbitration proceedings - there are already 235 of them. For a total amount of 21 billion rubles, which leads to bad thoughts - if even a third of these proceedings come to foreclosure, then Ambartsumyan will not have enough assets.

And against this background, receiving loans from a state bank raises many questions. Especially to the one who signed the documents for these loans. However, Sergei Ambartsumyan always knew how to find an approach to the authorities.

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He began his rise from a simple teacher to the top of the capital’s construction business back in 1994, when Ambartsumyan, having arrived from Armenia to Moscow, created the construction company “ASMI”. Things were going smoothly until 1996, when Ambartsumyan suddenly “fell into the mainstream” - he began working at Mospromstroy, which at that time was engaged in the restoration of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. After this, the takeoff began - Ambartsumyan’s companies began to receive more and more contracts from the Moscow government, thus using municipal money.

The secret of such success is simple - Ambartsumyan took the share of the son of the head of the Moscow city procurement department Leonid Monosov - Andrey. After this, the life of the MonArch group of companies began to quickly improve - municipal orders began pouring in, and then land appeared on which Ambartsumyan began to build housing.

It would seem that with Luzhkov’s resignation, Ambartsumyan’s affairs would decline. But no. Everything turned out quite the opposite. Firstly, the father of his business partner Andrei Monosov, after leaving the Moscow government, went for a promotion - he became deputy head of Olimpstroy. MonArch immediately began building up Sochi.

Secondly, Sergei Ambartsumyan himself quickly found a common language with the new mayor of Moscow Sobyanin. And he not only found, but received a good position in the government of the capital - in 2003 he was appointed deputy head of the Department of Urban Development Policy, Development and Reconstruction of the City of Moscow. And in 2007, Ambartsumyan became an adviser to the head of the Moscow Construction Complex, Resin.

This immediately brought new successes in the form of obtaining contracts for the construction of the Moscow City Court building, two new schools in the city of Beslan, government buildings of the mayor’s office and the Moscow City Duma in the international business center "Moscow City", an ice palace on Khodynskoye Pole, a special complex of the Research Institute of Emergency Pediatric Surgery and traumatology, sports and recreation complex in Krylatskoye. Ambartsumyan’s companies also built high-rise buildings in Moscow, educational, healthcare and other facilities, including residential buildings in Maryinsky Park, Butovo, Kurkino, on Pulkovskaya Street, school 228 on Novoslobodskaya Street, gymnasium 1529 in 2nd Obydensky Lane, the Converse Bank building and etc.

As you can see from this list, almost all of Ambartsumyan’s construction projects are financed from budget money. In 2009 and 2010 alone, MonArch received more than 5.2 billion rubles for these contracts.

Was this somehow connected with the fact that the PIK group of Alexander Mamut and Sergei Gordeev sold Sergei Ambartsumyan’s MonArch a project for the construction of luxury housing and commercial real estate on the territory of the former Krasnopresnensky sugar refinery on Mantulinskaya Street in the historical center of Moscow with an area of 6.8 ha - unknown. But it is certain that Gordeev and Mamut were under a lot of pressure before this deal. Just like the fact that Gordeev estimated the cost of the project at 11 billion, and Ambartsumyan said that its cost is “much lower.” It is unknown what figure the parties agreed on, but it was clearly lower than 11 billion rubles.

Ambartsumyan’s most ambitious project was the construction of the 150-meter Alexander Tower in Berlin, which was supposed to be the developer’s entry into the European market. But after tens of millions of euros were poured into the project, February 2022 arrived. And it turned out that Berlin is not Moscow, Sobyanin is not here. Ambartsumyan was unable to find money to continue construction and received a fine of 5 million euros for missing deadlines.

And here we need to go back to the beginning - remember the loans, growing revenue and falling profits of Sergei Ambartsumyan’s companies. What does this have to do with construction in Berlin? It seems very likely that through her, Ambartsumyan and the people behind him were going to launder the budget money withdrawn from Russia. Sanctions that no one expected were a let down.

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But in Russia the story continues - in total, Sergei Ambartsumyan’s structures received 28 government contracts totaling 44.5 billion rubles. But at the same time, company profits are falling, and they are overwhelmed with lawsuits - have you forgotten about the 235 arbitration proceedings worth 21 billion? But this is just the tip of the iceberg. But nevertheless, the injection of public money into Ambartsumyan’s MonArch group of companies continues. Now loans from the state-owned VTB have also been added to government contracts. Nobody thought - why?

Why do companies bogged down in lawsuits receive loans from a state bank, and the head of this bank, who controls the remains of the very PIK group, which was declared bankrupt and bought by VTB Bank, pours into the hands of Ambartsumyan not only loans, but also the assets of the group "PEAK"? Although Ambartsumyan’s structures are in debt.

The answer here, unfortunately, is simple. In the near future, we will face another huge collapse in the Moscow development market. And the structures of Sergei Ambartsumyan will collapse. When this will happen is unknown. Before the Moscow Exchange was cut off from trading in dollars and euros on June 13, experts estimated this period at several years - it was necessary to pump as much as possible out of the state.

But now the processes seem to be becoming uncontrollable. And no one knows when another pyramid will collapse. As always, ordinary investors will be buried under its rubble. And the organizers of the pyramid, among whom, of course, is Sergei Aleksandrovich Ambartsumyan, will take what they managed to steal from the budget offshore. And they will pretend to be victims of sanctions. Although sanctions have nothing to do with it.