MALDEV GENERAL TRADING

🔴 High Risk

MALDEV GENERAL TRADING, a Dubai-based company engaged in refined oil trading, logistics, and real estate, has emerged as a notable actor in suspected transnational money laundering schemes. Operating within a high-risk jurisdiction known for trade-based laundering vulnerabilities, the company is linked to suspicious financial activities involving overinvoicing and complex layering, particularly connected to Russian illicit financial networks. Despite the absence of formal legal actions, MALDEV GENERAL TRADING’s opaque corporate structure, questionable management background, and its role in facilitating illicit fund flows underscore significant concerns about regulatory gaps and enforcement challenges in Dubai’s commercial landscape.

MALDEV GENERAL TRADING is a Dubai-based company operating primarily in refined oil trade, logistics, and real estate. It has been implicated in suspicious financial activities connected to a larger money laundering scandal involving Russian companies. Trade-based money laundering mechanisms, including invoice fraud and overinvoicing, appear to be used to channel illicit funds through this entity. The involvement of individuals with diverse and inconsistent business backgrounds, along with failed attempts to obtain official explanations from the company, heightens suspicion about the legitimacy of its operations. While no formal legal actions have been publicly disclosed against MALDEV GENERAL TRADING, the company’s connections to known laundering entities and jurisdictional risk position it as a high-risk node in transnational illicit financial flows.

Country of Incorporation

United Arab Emirates (Dubai)

Based and operating commercially in Dubai, UAE

Refined Oil, Logistics, Real Estate

MALDEV GENERAL TRADING is a commercially active company involved in refined oil trading, along with activities in logistics and real estate. Specific classification details such as shell company or holding company are not explicitly stated, but evidence suggests it may function as a front or shell company engaged in suspicious trade activities.

MALDEV GENERAL TRADING is a commercially active company involved in refined oil trading, along with activities in logistics and real estate. Specific classification details such as shell company or holding company are not explicitly stated, but evidence suggests it may function as a front or shell company engaged in suspicious trade activities.

The company was reported to be run since March 2014 by Pavlos Argyrou, a person of Cypriot nationality.
A former senior employee named Farrukh Kadyrkhodjayev has been linked to the company. His background includes education at the University of Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and residency in the UAE. He has experience managing companies in diverse sectors ranging from oil refining to women’s jewelry businesses, raising questions about the consistency and legitimacy of operations.

No confirmed involvement of Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) has been identified in publicly available information.

MALDEV GENERAL TRADING has been mentioned in investigations and reports related to Russian money laundering scandals uncovered through leaked data and investigative journalism (such as OCCRP reports). The company received significant financial transfers from entities named in major financial corruption scandals, including SEABON LIMITED and CRYSTALORD LIMITED, which are linked to Russian money laundering activities. However, direct inclusion in named leaks like Panama Papers specific to MALDEV GENERAL TRADING is not confirmed.

High
Dubai and the broader UAE have frequently been highlighted as jurisdictions with vulnerabilities to money laundering through trade-based schemes, given certain regulatory gaps and the presence of many shell and front companies.

No specific sanctions, regulatory fines, or court cases are publicly disclosed against MALDEV GENERAL TRADING as of now. Attempts to obtain clarifications from the company about suspicious transactions have been unsuccessful.

Active (commercial activity noted around 2013–2014), current operational status unclear.

2013: The company engaged in trade deals with Russian companies involved in money laundering, receiving payments totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars in transactions related to building materials and oil refining.
November 2013: Received $306,936 from SEABON LIMITED for building materials via Emirates NBD Dubai.
March 2014: Management reportedly transferred to Pavlos Argyrou.
Post-2014: The company’s activities and presence appear to diminish, with no public responses to inquiries about suspicious deals.

Trade-Based Money Laundering, Invoice Fraud, Layering

Middle East and North Africa (MENA), UAE

High Risk Country

MALDEV GENERAL TRADING

MALDEV GENERAL TRADING
Country of Registration:
United Arab Emirates
Headquarters:
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Jurisdiction Risk:
High
Industry/Sector:
Refined Oil Trading, Logistics, Real Estate
Laundering Method Used:

Trade-based money laundering, invoice fraud, overinvoicing, layering

Linked Individuals:

Pavlos Argyrou (Director, Cypriot national); Farrukh Kadyrkhodjayev (former senior employee)

Known Shell Companies:

Potential front/shell company; no explicit named shell companies confirmed

Offshore Links:
1
Estimated Amount Laundered:
Transactions totaling hundreds of thousands USD (not fully disclosed)
🔴 High Risk