The European Union has decided to keep Mikhail Fridman, a prominent Russian-Israeli oligarch and major shareholder of LetterOne, on its sanctions list.

This decision comes following an agreement reached on Friday morning, wherein four individuals were excluded from the sanctions, but Fridman's name remained.

He is known for controlling 77.7% of the DIA supermarket chain.

Negotiations among EU member states were urgent, as sanctions against around 2,000 individuals were set to lapse on Saturday.

These sanctions include travel bans to the EU and asset freezes.

The renewal of this sanctions regime requires unanimous consent among member states and targets individuals with varying levels of involvement in Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

According to diplomatic sources, the agreement reached on Friday excluded businessmen Vladimir Rashevsky, Moshe Kantor, Gulbakhor Ismailova—sister of a sanctioned oligarch—and Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyaryov.

Hungary initiated discussions several weeks ago, initially seeking the suspension of all individual sanctions, including those targeting alleged war criminals and even President Vladimir Putin.

However, Hungary later refined its position, seeking the removal of nine names, including Fridman.

Some EU member states supported the exclusion of certain names, while others argued against any removals.

Nevertheless, a consensus among diplomats emerged to exclude Rashevsky, whose inclusion was seen as having weak legal grounds.

Prior to the decision, multiple sources indicated that Hungary had deprioritized the exclusion of Fridman, raising the likelihood that he would remain sanctioned, which has ultimately come to pass.

Fridman had resigned from the board of LetterOne shortly after being sanctioned following the onset of the Ukraine invasion, yet he did not divest his shares in the company, unlike other sanctioned oligarchs.

Furthermore, he and partner Petr Aven have recently sold their stakes in Alfa Bank, presumably to facilitate their potential removal from the sanctions list.

Fridman and Aven nearly held a combined majority stake in LetterOne, which also involves significant shares from the Mark Foundation for Cancer Research.

The lifting of sanctions would effectively allow Fridman to resume leadership of LetterOne, from which he stepped down due to the sanctions.

Shares belonging to other sanctioned Russian individuals, German Khan and Alexey Kuzmichev, were acquired by Andrey Kosogov, a co-founder of the holding company, who is not subject to EU restrictions.

In 2022, DIA defended its 'Spanish identity' and its separation from any sanctioned individuals by informing the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) that 'no individual shareholder of LetterOne controls it, either individually or through agreements with other shareholders.'

LetterOne has actively sought the repeal of sanctions against Aven and Fridman, asserting that the restrictions have adversely affected its operations and, subsequently, the economies of the EU and the UK, where both individuals are also sanctioned.

Fridman, who was born in Ukraine, lived in London from 2014 before returning to Russia in 2023, where he has been seen at public events.

In 2024, the General Court of the EU ruled that the justifications for Fridman's sanctions were not 'sufficiently substantiated,' thus stating that the measure 'was not justified.' Despite this, he remained on the list, as the Council of the EU reinforced its arguments for maintaining the sanctions.

Fridman is currently appealing the decision at the European Court of Justice.