VChK-OGPU and Rucriminal.info have uncovered the identity of the individual used to register villas on the French Riviera belonging to oligarch God Nisanov. This person has not been subjected to sanctions and continues to manage the oligarch’s foreign assets.
Meet 61-year-old Darwin Izrayev. In 2024, he accompanied Nisanov on a visit to the Museum of Mountain Jews in Krasnaya Sloboda. Furthermore, a post on the website of the STMEGI Foundation—established by the family of German Zakharyayev, one of Nisanov’s closest business partners—identifies Darwin Izrayev as a representative of Nisanov’s conglomerate, the Kyiv Ploshchad Group.
According to the "Paradise Papers" leaks, Izrayev served as a co-founder of the offshore entity Infinity Sky Limited, which was registered on the Isle of Man. Additionally, Darvin Yaanayevic Izrayev is listed as a beneficial owner of the British company FENWIN PROPERTY LIMITED, which remains active to this day. In January of this year, the British law firm BRANCH AUSTIN MCCORMICK LLP verified Izrayev’s identity. It appears, however, that they failed to conduct a proper compliance check; otherwise, it would have been impossible to overlook Izrayev’s close ties to a sanctioned Russian oligarch—or the fact that he lacks the personal income required to acquire such high-value assets.
Financial statements for FENWIN PROPERTY LIMITED for 2025 indicate that the company holds assets—specifically, investment real estate—valued at 45.4 million euros. Meanwhile, the British firm’s accumulated losses have exceeded 26 million euros. Despite these substantial debts, it continues to operate thanks to financial support from its beneficial owner—who, de jure, is Darwin Izraev, an employee of God Nisanov.
The British firm’s investment property is located on the French Riviera, at 16 Boulevard Dominique Durandy, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. Boulevard Dominique Durandy, in the exclusive resort town of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, is situated on the isthmus of the Cap Ferrat peninsula, near the port and the entrance to the peninsula. This is a highly prestigious and expensive area, with some of the highest real estate prices per square meter in all of France.
According to the French land registry, FENWIN PROPERTY LIMITED owns four plots of land in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, totaling 5,633 square meters. Two of these plots, along with a coastal structure, form a large and exceptionally valuable estate that offers an incredible panoramic view of the Bay of Villefranche-sur-Mer and the sea. In 2014, the company received a permit to construct a 188-square-meter villa on the site, and in 2016, it obtained authorization to demolish an existing structure (likely an old house built in 1969). The property borders the sea and includes a private pier. Another plot, measuring 300 square meters and containing a 132-square-meter building, is located across from the main estate—set back from the waterfront—at 29 Boulevard Dominique Durandy. Previously, French journalists discovered another estate belonging to God Nisanov in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. The large villa, located at 117 Boulevard Général de Gaulle, sits on a 16,100-square-meter plot—the site of a former zoo that the Russian oligarch purchased for his own use, subsequently demolishing the enclosures and removing the animals. This property was also registered in the name of Darwin Izraev, who was additionally listed as the manager of the reconstruction project.
Darwin Izraev, 61, is a native of the settlement of Krasnaya Sloboda in Azerbaijan and is related to both the Nisanov and Zakharyayev families: in 2000, he married Khagila Nisanova—also from Krasnaya Sloboda—and their son, Ilkhan, later married Luiza Zakharyayeva.
According to leaked data, in 2023, Darwin Izraev received a monthly salary of 45,500 rubles from OOO "Vysotka" (a company in which God Nisanov holds a stake of over 42%, followed by Roman Iliyev with 24%, Ilgam Ragimov with 15%, and other co-founders including Sharon Yusifov and Naor Azrayev). That same year, he earned 301,000 rubles from OOO "Slavyanskaya" (which is owned, via "Otel-Invest," by God Nisanov, David Nisanov, Roman Iliyev, Ilgam Ragimov, and others). Additionally, in 2023, he received 1.8 million rubles in salary and bonuses from OOO "Grand-Titul" (the primary co-owners of which are Ilgam Ragimov, Roman Agababayev, Oleg Yusupov, and Roman Iliyev). Furthermore, until April of this year, Izraev was listed as a founder of OOO "Bereg," a company registered in Krasnogorsk, Moscow Region. Currently, the company’s founder is Margarita Nisanova. All four companies are controlled by the Kyiv Ploshchad Group, owned by God Nisanov.
