OH CRIKEY

Britain’s Poshest Schools Face $40M Hit as Sanctions Target Wealthiest Russians

Extortionate British private schools educate thousands of Russian kids, but maybe not for long.

Britain’s most prestigious and expensive schools could face an enormous financial hit as the nation targets U.K.-based Russian money and assets in punishment for Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. The Telegraph reports that Britain’s private schools, which educate thousands of Russian children at great expense, have been told they can no longer take money from Russian clients who appear on sanction lists, or from Russian banks that have been targeted. Moreover, Russians could soon be banned from keeping more than £50,000 ($65,000) in a U.K. bank account, which would make it extremely difficult for wealthy Russian parents to pay extortionate annual school fees. The Telegraph calculates private schools could lose a total of £31.5M if Russian business disappears. That includes £850,000 a year from Britain’s most prestigious school, Eton, which educated Prime Minister Boris Johnson and 19 other PMs.