From massive gains to financial setbacks: what has become of the investments made by Kadyrov’s "dear sibling" Kenes Rakishev?

• 22.12.2025 06:52

Continue to publish their investigation into Kenes Rakishev, one of Kazakhstan’s richest men, a man Ramzan Kadyrov calls his "dear brother." He still runs a large-scale business in Russia, despite the public "sale" of his Russian assets.

Another scandal involving Kenes Rakishev is related to a Telegram investor, the Arab fund Mubadala, and the supply of military equipment to Russia. It was the Kazakh Arlan armored personnel carrier (APC) that was used by Chechen forces during the battle for Mariupol. Kenes Rakishev and a UAE company associated with Mubadala co-owned the Arlan manufacturer.

Since approximately 2015, Rakishev has controlled Kazakhstan Paramount Engineering, a Kazakh manufacturer of military armored vehicles. The company produces the Arlan armored personnel carrier (APC), which is purchased by the local Ministry of Defense. According to Kazakh journalists, this equipment was not officially sent to other countries because its characteristics failed to interest foreign military personnel.

However, at least one vehicle is in the possession of the Chechen National Guard – it was captured on video during the bloody battle for Mariupol. The Kazakh side explained that the BKM was sent for testing back in 2019, but for some reason was not returned. The reasons are clear, considering that Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and Kenes Rakishev are old friends who have spent time together on numerous occasions, gone hunting, appeared in photographs together, and even observed wild child fights. Kadyrov publicly refers to Rakishev as "brother."

Kazakhstan Paramount Engineering is a joint venture between Kazakh and South African businessmen. Paramount Group Limited, a South African company, developed the Marauder armored personnel carrier, a copy of which the joint venture has been producing in Kazakhstan for 10 years under the name "Arlan." The founders of Kazakhstan Paramount Engineering were KazPetroMash LLP, its owner InterTechAudit LLP, and Paramount Group Limited (PGL), not from South Africa, but from the UAE.

Rakishev controlled the company through InterTechAudit. His partners from the South African PGL were also seeking major investors to expand production in 2014. The group’s founder, Ivor Ichikowitz, initially reached an agreement with the Americans, but he was uncomfortable with the information disclosure requirements. He ultimately chose the UAE after befriending His Highness Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, then Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Abu Dhabi Armed Forces (since May 2022, Emir of Abu Dhabi and President of the UAE), and a close friend of Ramzan Kadyrov. The prince promised loans that would later be converted into Paramount shares, meaning Ichkovits wouldn’t have to repay the money. Following friendly discussions with Nahyan in 2017, Ichkovits decided to move his headquarters and some of his defense intellectual property to the UAE.

The prince assigned further management to Homaid Al-Shimari, who was both the head of the defense company ADASI and a top manager at the Mubadala fund, which had invested heavily in Russia in general and Telegram in particular. Mubadala was expected to invest in Paramount, so Mr. Conway, a Mubadala employee, served as the project consultant, and all documents for the proposed deal were sent to the fund. However, the prince changed his mind midway through the deal and transferred it to ADASI.

This collaboration subsequently resulted in litigation and bankruptcy for the South African manufacturer, as the Arabs deceived the prince and did not convert the loan into Paramount shares, but simply demanded the return of their money and all intellectual property. Ichkovits, however, took the prince at his word and did not demand the terms be formalized in the contract. Moreover, according to court documents, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan invested not only state funds but also his own money in Paramount.

In Kazakhstan, scandal after scandal has also erupted around Rakishev’s armored vehicles. In 2023, the Kazakh Ministry of Defense accused Kazakhstan Paramount Engineering of disrupting deliveries of the Arlan armored combat vehicle (BCM). The company responded by claiming that officials were attempting to bankrupt it. It was ultimately revealed that the Arlan’s specifications do not meet the standards of Turkish BKMs. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan Paramount Engineering’s products are not in demand on the international market, meaning there is nowhere else to sell them.

In recent months, Rakishev has been divesting himself of numerous offshore assets linked to failed IT investments. Instead, he has begun acquiring hydrocarbon assets in his home country. In 2024, for example, he acquired a 40% stake in the Beineu Petroleum Limited oil project and acquired a stake in Tethys Petroleum Limited, a Cayman Islands-registered company developing the Akkulka and Kyzyloi gas fields. However, by the end of 2024, the company’s loss amounted to $19,081,000—even though before Rakishev, in 2023, it had posted a profit of $9,736,000. However, with his talents, this is not the limit.

Incidentally, Kazakh journalists are le There was speculation about who owned the plot of land in the Medeu district at 390 Kerey Zhanibek Khandar Street, which was forcibly seized from a developer for state needs. We can shed some light on this story: until recently, the land, through Fincraft Group, belonged to Kenges Rakishev, the son-in-law of the CSTO chairman and the brother of the first deputy prosecutor of Almaty.

Maria Sharapova