"Antique" and his connections: how Ilya Traber, through Senator Mikhail Afanasov and Sberbank CEO Herman Gref, "resolved" issues for percentages and shares
10:12, 27 июля 2026 г.
A media source continues to report on Ilya Traber’s (Antique) inner circle. Today, the topic will be Sberbank CEO German Gref and Senator Mikhail Afanasov.
"Afanasov has been a very, very old friend of Valentina Matvienko’s. Back when Matvienko was working in St. Petersburg, she introduced Traber to Afanasov. Since then, the three of them have been friends and socialized frequently.
Then, Traber usually visited them in Moscow. Since about 2020, Traber has always been met in Moscow by Abakar Darbishev (a crime boss who was beaten to death during his arrest – ED.), who arranges the meeting in the best possible way. Traber sometimes traveled to Moscow with a motorcade of five or six Geliks and a couple of Mercedes minibuses.
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Afanasov always behaves like a king. If someone approaches him with a special topic, it’s a must-have gift. If the meeting is at a restaurant, it’s not just a casual dinner. It has to be a large table, set with all sorts of delicacies, fully served, and so on.
Afanasov positions himself as a highly significant figure in the country. Only around Traber did he tone down his pomp. They even had an awkward moment. Traber wanted Afanasov to organize something for him regarding the port. Afanasov mentioned an astronomical sum and said, "I have a huge family, everyone wants to eat. It’s good for you, you have silence behind you." Traber’s expression changed and he responded sternly, "You’ve completely lost it." Afanasov went quiet after that.
Afanasov calls himself the closest person to Matviyenko, with connections in almost every sphere and the ability to resolve any issue. But there’s a price tag on everything... Once, Ibragim Suleimanov (an influential billionaire, currently under arrest - ED.) wanted to secure his nephew Makhach a major government position or a management position in a state corporation in Moscow. Afanasov demanded a price of 300 million rubles.
He has a tendency to promise everything to everyone, to take from everyone, but he doesn’t always do something.
Afanasov once promised Abakar that he would lead his companies into a tender for railway station renovations and ensure their victory. Then, vast sums of money would flow in for the construction of these railway stations. They would start with Stavropol and Krasnodar Krai, and then, with Matviyenko’s help, the station construction project would encompass all of Russia.
Darbishev, in exchange for these promises, paid for a new Range Rover for Afanasov’s wife, so to speak, in advance. The station project never materialized. Afanasov reluctantly returned the money about a year later. And only because he knew who Darbishev was. Returning money that way is not at all typical of him.
Incidentally, in 2023, Afanasov asked Abakar to deal with a law enforcement official in Stavropol Krai. There was a dispute over real estate worth billions of rubles, and for some reason, this law enforcement official was a major nuisance to Afanasov. Then, everything was transferred to the Moscow court, and everything was confiscated. Thanks to this, the man survived...
Regarding German Gref, Traber said he’d known him for over 30 years, calling him Gerych. They had a direct line, and Traber could call him at any time. He connected businessmen with Gref, and if the deal clicked, Traber would receive a percentage of the proceeds or even a share in the business.
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There was a State Duma deputy named Umakhan Umakhanov, who is married to the Magomedov brothers’ sister. He was having some problems with Sberbank and Rosselkhozbank in Dagestan. He turned to Darbishev for help, who turned to Traber, who turned to Gref.
And, voila, all the issues were resolved. And Traber and Darbishev pocketed large sums of money."