Xtellus Partners, a U.S. investment bank, has floated a proposal to the U.S. Treasury that would use proceeds from the sale of Lukoil’s foreign assets to compensate American investors whose holdings were frozen following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Major U.S. asset managers — including BlackRock, JP Morgan, and Goldman Sachs — collectively lost billions after writing off positions in Russian companies. Xtellus is proposing a cashless swap, in which U.S. investors would exchange their frozen Lukoil securities for ownership of Lukoil’s global assets, estimated at $22 billion.
The bank is advising billionaire Todd Boehly and Allied Investment Partners (UAE) in the proposed transaction. Both the U.S. Treasury and Lukoil declined to comment.
🔹 Why This Deal Matters
- Western sanctions prohibit cash payments to Lukoil, making a share-for-assets swap potentially faster and compliant.
- Lukoil must sell its international assets by December 13 but has requested more time to negotiate.
- Global energy players — from Carlyle to Chevron — have expressed interest.
- Western investors previously held over 25% of Lukoil’s shares; the company is currently valued at ~$50 billion.
If approved, Boehly and Allied Investment Partners would look to resell the assets, likely to energy-sector buyers, pending approval from both Lukoil and the U.S. Treasury.
Xtellus, spun out from VTB Capital’s U.S. operations in 2018, is positioning itself at the center of one of the most complex sanction-era asset restructurings to date.