Sanctioned Businessman's Charities Yield £1.3 Million and Rare Violin for Good Causes
A culturally significant violin valued at £150,000 and a substantial cash sum of £1.3 million have been redistributed to charitable organisations following a comprehensive investigation by the Charities Commission. The assets were recovered from foundations established by Dr Vitacheslav Kantor, a Russian-born billionaire who was designated under the UK's Russia Sanctions regime in April 2022.
Regulatory Action and Asset Recovery
The Charity Commission successfully seized the prized musical instrument, crafted by renowned Italian violin maker Riccardo Antoniazzi in 1912, alongside £1,388,000 in funds. Dr Vitacheslav Kantor, also known as Moshe, founded and funded both the Kantor Foundation and Kantor Charitable Foundation, which were intended to provide grants to various charitable projects. However, these entities have now been wound up as a direct result of the regulatory probe.
Joshua Farbridge, Head of Compliance and Visits and Inspections at the Charity Commission, emphasised the legal implications of Dr Kantor's designation. "Once designated, an individual cannot legally act as a trustee," he stated. "Dr Kantor’s failure to step down immediately, his decision to ignore the Commission, and his lack of cooperation constituted misconduct and/or mismanagement. This behaviour fell well below our expectations for trustees."
Investigation and Consequences
The Commission initiated inquiries into several charities connected to Dr Kantor, including the Kantor Charitable Foundation (KCF), Kantor Foundation (KF), and the World Holocaust Forum Foundation (WHFF). In response, the regulator took decisive action:
- Freezing charity bank accounts to prevent unauthorised transactions.
- Removing Dr Kantor as a trustee of WHFF in May 2022, which automatically disqualified him from trustee roles and ended his directorship at Kantor Trustees.
- Appointing Interim Managers to oversee the charities' operations.
These measures led to the identification of outstanding Gift Aid claims and the eventual distribution of remaining funds through charitable grants to multiple organisations, aligning with the original purposes of the foundations.
Dissolution of Charities
By June 2023, the Charity Commission concluded that both the Kantor Foundation and Kantor Charitable Foundation were no longer viable and should be dissolved. This decision was based on several critical findings:
- Dr Kantor was the sole donor, making future funding highly unlikely.
- There were no remaining trustees to manage the charities following his designation and the subsequent resignation of other directors.
- Significant reputational damage from the sanctions designation hindered potential fundraising or recruitment efforts.
The Commission further determined that Dr Kantor's actions, including his failure to resign proactively and cooperate with the investigation, amounted to misconduct and mismanagement. Consequently, both charities have been removed from the public Register of Charities.
Positive Outcomes for the Charitable Sector
Despite the controversies, the investigation has yielded positive results for the wider charitable community. "We are pleased some good can come to other charities and causes as a result of our intervention," said Farbridge. "Instead of assets lying dormant, or owed Gift Aid lost, we’ve been able to see a much-needed boost of over £1.3 million into the sector, and a culturally significant musical instrument gifted to a charity furthering musical education."
The redistribution of these assets ensures that valuable resources are now supporting genuine charitable endeavours, providing a significant financial injection and enhancing cultural education initiatives across the UK.
