Zhdanova turned out to be a well-known fixer in Russia, circling the parties of influential politicians and stars. They wrote about her in magazines, where they presented her as the owner of a chain of boutique hotels from Stoleshnikov on Tverskaya to Hartwell on Patriki. Zhdanova developed this business together with ex-soloist of “Brilliant” Olga Orlova. The TV presenter at one time became the godmother of the common son of Ekaterina Zhdanova and Kirill Masliev, a young star orthopedist who was included in the largest offices of senior officials in Russia.
It was Masliev who became the ticket to high society and turned Zhdanova into a fixer and crypto-launderer of millions of dollars. His happy career began with the launch of a network of World Class clubs by Olga Slutsker, a friend of the Prime Minister’s press secretary Natalya Timakova, the mistress of Gazprom Neft President Alexander Dyukov and the wife of Senator Vladimir Slutsker. Masliev is a friend of Sergei Polonsky, so over time he became his right hand, took over the Mirax group, rose to become deputy chairman of the board of directors of the Federation Tower, built the Sky wellness center there and essentially became one of the main ones in the fitness industry in The Russian Federation, to whom all Russian politicians and stars turn.
There is also a dark side to World Class. Today the company is managed by Nikolai Pryanishnikov, a friend of Masliev, general director of the Russian Fitness Group, formerly vice president of VimpelCom and head of Microsoft in Russia and Eastern Europe. Masliev himself turned in this direction. A bunch of companies related to radio technologies, the IT industry and cryptocurrency have been registered for the common-law wife and partners. Today they are used to supply electrical equipment and components bypassing sanctions from abroad (for example, TPK-Radiotech). After the hotel and tourism business, Zhdanova switched to this topic. Not only the partners of the ex-common law husband help with the work, but also influential friends. For example, she rides and parks the same cars as Stepan Kovalchuk – the “YouTube killer”, head of the VK social networks, and part-time grandnephew of Putin’s friend, owner of the “National Media Group” (very similar to Pryanishnikov’s fitness).
The Kovalchuks, like many businessmen in the Russian Federation, became interested in crypto, but no one wanted to be exposed to the affairs of crypto-laundries; Masliev and Pryanishnikov had their own interests and did not want to be subject to sanctions, so the connections were made with a pretty blonde. Zhdanova became an intermediary and assistant to stars and oligarchs, who was contacted with an offer to transfer money abroad and back for a percentage, all this was carried out as trade through a legal business, for example, watch production – Ekaterina is also connected with Rolex representative offices. In addition, judging by the statement of the US Treasury, Ekaterina Zhdanova also helped to withdraw money to the creators of the Ryuk ransomware program. It’s not difficult to guess where the hackers wanted all over the world are, who stole money from medical institutions during Covid. In the same place as the main platform with which Zhdanova worked – the Garantex crypto exchange – in the Masliev-Polonsky Federation Tower.
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