II Krasna Polyana R.D., NO 226, Apt. 78, Sofia, Bulgaria
Reg. ID
7704304020, National ID No.
Official reason
Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned five current or former Bulgarian government officials — Rumen Stoyanov Ovcharov (Ovcharov), Aleksandar Hristov Nikolov (Nikolov), Ivan Kirov Genov (Genov), Nikolay Simeonov Malinov (Malinov), and Vladislav Ivanov Goranov (Goranov) — for their extensive involvement in corruption in Bulgaria. OFAC also designated four entities owned or controlled by Malinov, as well as an entity owned or controlled by Goranov. These individuals and entities are being designated pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13818, which builds upon and implements the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act and targets perpetrators of serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world. Additionally, Ovcharov, Nikolov, Goranov, and their immediate families are now subject to visa restrictions by the Department of State under Section 7031(c) of the annual Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act. Section 7031(c) provides that, in cases where the Secretary of State has credible information that foreign officials have been involved in significant corruption or a gross violation of human rights, those individuals and their immediate family members are ineligible for entry into the United States. Click here to view more information on the Section 7031(c) designations. Vladislav Ivanov Goranov served as a Bulgarian MP and was Minister of Finance in the second and third administrations led by the Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) political party from November 2014 to January 2017 and again from May 2017 to July 2020. Goranov also has connections to OFAC-designated oligarch and former Bulgarian MP Delyan Peevski. Goranov used his position as Minister of Finance to facilitate bribery of Bulgarian officials and deprive the Bulgarian government of tax revenues in favor of Bulgarian oligarchs.
As Minister of Finance, Goranov participated in a corruption scheme that resulted in tens of millions of euros paid to Bulgarian officials in exchange for favorable legislation for interested parties involved in the gambling industry.
Legal challenges to tax assessments following additional adjustments to the corrupt legislation identified a loss of nearly 600 million Bulgarian leva (approximately $300 million) from tax authorities over a five-year period, to the benefit of Bulgarian oligarch interests.
OFAC is designating Goranov pursuant to E.O. 13818 for being a foreign person who is a current or former government official, or a person acting for or on behalf of such an official, who is responsible for or complicit in, or has directly or indirectly engaged in, corruption, including the misappropriation of state assets, the expropriation of private assets for personal gain, corruption related to government contracts or the extraction of natural resources, or bribery.
OFAC is also designating one entity, Trilemma Consulting Ltd EOOD, a sole proprietorship consulting company, pursuant to E.O. 13818 for being owned or controlled by, directly or indirectly, Goranov.
On December 23, 2016, the President signed the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (Pub. L. 114-328, Title XII, Subtitle F) (the “Act”) into law. The Act authorized the President to impose targeted sanctions on any foreign person the President determines is, among other things, responsible for extrajudicial killings, torture, or other gross violations of internationally recognized human rights, or a government official, or a senior associate of such an official, responsible for, or complicit in, ordering, controlling, or otherwise directing, acts of significant corruption.
On December 20, 2017, the President, invoking the authority of, inter alia, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701-1706) (IEEPA), issued Executive Order 13818 (82 FR 60839, December 26, 2017) (E.O. 13818), effective at 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on December 21, 2017.
In E.O. 13818, the President determined that serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States and declared a national emergency to deal with that threat.
OFAC is issuing the Global Magnitsky Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR part 583 (the “Regulations”), to implement the Act and E.O. 13818, pursuant to authorities delegated to the Secretary of the Treasury in E.O. 13818. A copy of E.O. 13818 appears in appendix A to this part.
