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TRUMP’S RUSSIANS citizen, resident in Zurich,” was listed as the company’s president in 1993. “Boris Birshtein” is also listed as the president and director of a 1991 Panama company, The Seabeco Group, Inc. as of December 6 1991. See below. 32 Marcel Sel, “Quand Kubla et De Decker tournent kazakh (MàJ)” Un Blog de Sel, February 26, 2015. 33 The Zurich company registry reports that “Seabeco SA” (CHE-104.863.207) was initially registered on December 16, 1982, with “Boris Joseph Birshtein, Canadian citizen, resident in Toronto” as its president. According to the registry, it entered liquidation on May 5, 1999. See also “Seabeco—Agreement Between Boris Birshtein & Sergei Mikhailov—Russian Mafia—Intelligence Newsletter,” March 27, 1997. Posted on the Google Group soc.culture.ukrainian. The liquidation was handled by the Swiss trustee Paul Barth, in Arth. 34 For Seabeco’s Antwerp subsidiary, see Alain Lallemand, “Perquisitions en série dans le dossier Mikhaïlov: un lien apparaît entre le mafieux russe et un homme davantage lié au KGB, Boris Birshtein,” Le Soir, March 17, 1997. 35 Royal HTM Group, Inc. of Toronto, Canadian Federal Corporation #624476-9, owned 50- 50 by Birshtein and his nephew. See “Federal Corporation Information—624476-9,” Government of Canada, January 3, 2017. 36 Birshtein was a director of Seabeco Capital Inc. (Canadian Federal Incorporation #248194-4,) a Winnipeg company created June 2, 1989, and dissolved December 22, 1992. 37 Since 1998, Boris Birshtein (Toronto) has also served as Chairman, CEO, and a principle shareholder of “Trimol Group Inc.,” a publicly traded Delaware company that trades over the counter. (Symbol: TMOL). Its product line is supposedly “computerized photo identification and database management system utilized in the production of a variety of secure essential government identification documents.” See “TMOL:US,” Bloomberg Markets. However, according to Trimol’s July 2015 10-K (accessed on Wikinvest), the company has only had one customer, the former FSU member Moldova, with which Trimol’s wholly owned subsidiary Intercomsoft concluded a contract in 1996 for the production of a National Passport and Population Registration system. That contract was not renewed in 2006, and the subsidiary and Trimol have had no revenues since then. Accordingly, as of 2016 Trimol has only two part-time employees, its two principal shareholders, Birshtein and his nephew, who, directly and indirectly account for 79 percent of Trimol’s shares outstanding. According to the July 2015 10-K, Birshtein, in particular, owned 54 percent of TMOL’s outstanding 78.3 million shares, including 3.9 million by way of “Magnum Associates, Inc.,” which the 10-K says only has Birshtein as a shareholder, and 34.7 million by way of yet another Canadian company, “Royal HTM Group, Inc.” of Ontario (Canadian Federal Corporation #624476-9), which is also owned 50-50 by Birshtein and a nephew. It is interesting to note that according to the Panama Papers database, a Panama company called “Magnum Associates Inc.” was incorporated on December 10, 1987, and struck off on March 10, 1989. See “Magnum Associates Inc.,” Offshore Leaks Database, ICIJ. As of December 2016, TMOL’s stock price was zero. 38 See the case of Trimol Group, Inc. above. The Seabeco Group, Inc., a Panama company that was formed in December 1991, apparently still exists. Boris J. Birshtein is listed as this company’s director and president. “The Seabeco Group Inc.,” was registered in Panama by Morgan y Morgan on December 6, 1991, with “numero de ficha” 254192; see “The Seabeco Group Inc.,” Dan O’Huiginn’s Panama Company Records Database; and “The Seabeco Group, Inc.,” OpenCorporates. 39 As of December 2016, the Zurich company registry listed a Zurich company called “Conim Investment AG” (CH-020.3.002.334-7), which was originally formed in May 1992, and in January 1995 was transferred to Arth, in the Canton of Schwyz, where it is still in existence (CHE-102.029.498). This is confirmed by the Schwyz Canton registry. According to these registries, Conim Investment AG is the successor company to two other Zurich companies, “Seabeco Kirgizstan AG,” formed in 1992, and “KD Kirgizstan Development AG,” its direct successor. The Swiss federal company registry also reports the following Swiss companies in which Boris J. Birshtein has been SPRING (MARCH/APRIL) 2017 23
RUSSIA an officer and or a director, all of which are now in liquidation: (1) Seabeco Trade and Finance AG (CH-020.3.002.179-4, April 3, 1992–November 30, 1998) (2) Seabeco SA (CHE-104.863.207, December 16, 1982– May 9, 1999); (3) Seabeco Metals AG (April 3, 1992–June 11, 1996) (4) BNB Trading AG (CH-020.3.002.181-9, January 10, 1992–November 19, 1998); and (5) ME Moldova Enterprises AG (CH-020.3.003.104-1, November 10 1992–September 16, 1994). All of these liquidations were handled by the same trustee, Paul Barth, in Arth. 40 As of December 2016, active Birshtein companies include “Conim Investment AG” (CH- 020.3.002.334-7) in the Swiss Canton of Schwyz and the Seabeco Group, Inc. in Panama. 41 For example, the Zurich and Schwyz company registries indicates that the following have been board members of Birshtein companies: (1) Seabeco Trade and Finance AG: Iouri Orlov (citizen of Russia, resident of Moscow), Alexander Griaznov (citizen of Russia, resident of Basserdorf, Switzerland), and Igor Filippov (citizen of Russia, resident of Basel). (2) ME Moldova Enterprises: Andrei Keptein (citizen of FSU/Moldova; Evsei Shnaider (Russian émigré to Canada); (3) Seabeco Kirigizstan/ Conim Investment AG: Sanjarbek Almatov (citizen of Bishkek, FSU/ Kirgizstan), Toursounbek Tchynguychev (citizen of Bishkek, FSU/Kirgizstan), Evsei Shnaider (Russian émigré to Canada); (4) BNB Trading AG: Yuri Spivak (Russian émigré to Canada); (5) Seabeco Metals AG: Alex Shnaider (Russian émigré to Canada). 42 Charles Clover, “Ukraine: Questions Over Kuchma’s Adviser Cast Shadows,” Financial Times, October 30, 1999; Chris Matthews, “Fortune 5: The Biggest Organized Crime Groups in the World,” Fortune, September 14, 2014. See also Misha Glenny, McMafia: A Journey Through the Global Criminal Underworld (Vintage Books, 2009), pp. 63–5. 43 Charles Clover, “Ukraine: Questions over Kuchma’s adviser cast shadows.” 44 See “Semion Mogilevich Organization: Eurasian Organized Crime,” FBI Intelligence Section, Organizational Intelligence Unit (August 1998). 45 Charles Clover, “Ukraine: Questions Over Kuchma’s Adviser Cast Shadows.” 46 Ibid. 47 Jack Lakey & Cal Millar, “Boris Knows Everyone,” Toronto Star, August 28, 1993. 48 See Zurich corporate registry for “Seabeco Metals AG” (CH-020.3.002.181-9), formed April 3, 1992 and liquidated June 11, 1996. 49 Heidi Brown & Nathan Vardi “Man of Steel,” Forbes, March 28, 2005. 50 “Company Overview of Midland Resources Holding Ltd.,” Bloomberg, January 13, 2017. 51 Ibid. 52 See “Loan Book, September 2008,” Kaupthing Bank. Found in “Financial collapse: Confidential Exposure Analysis of 205 Companies Each Owing Above EUR45M to Icelandic Bank Kaupthing, 26 Sep 2008,” Wikileaks, July 30, 2009. 53 The ICIJ’s Offshore Leaks Database provides an address for “Midland Resources Holding Limited” that exactly matches the company’s corporate address in Guernsey, as noted by Bloomberg’s corporate database (“Company Overview of Midland Resources Holding Ltd.,” Bloomberg, January 16, 2017). Here are the 28 companies that are associated with Midland in the database: Aligory Business Ltd.; Anglesey Business Ltd.; Blue Industrial Skies Inc.; Cl 850 Aviation Holdings Ltd.; Cl 850 Aircraft Investments Ltd.; Caray Business Inc.; Challenger Aircraft Company Limited; Colley International Marketing S.A.; East International Realty Ltd.; Filbert Pacific Limited; Gorlane Business Inc.; Jabar Incorporated; Jervois Holdings Inc.; Kerryhill Investments Corp.; Leaterby International Investments Corp.; Maddocks Equities Ltd.; Maverfin Holding Inc.; Midland Maritime Holding Ltd.; Midland River-Sea Holding Ltd.; Midland Drybulk Holding Ltd.; Midland Fundco Ltd.; Norson Investments Corp.; Olave Equities Limited; Orlion Business Incorporated; Perseus Global Inc.; Sellana Investments Global Corp.; Stogan Assets Incorporated; and Toomish Asset Ltd. 54 With the address “11 First Tverskaya-Yamskaya Street, Apt. 42, Moscow, Russia.” See “Colley International Marketing,” “Mr. Oleg Sheykhametov,” and “Olave Equities Limited,” Offshore Leaks Database, ICIJ. 55 As for the Midland-related offshore vehicles 24 THE AMERICAN INTEREST
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