Russia's state polling agency VCIOM chief's family found to own 500 million rubles' worth of assets

Alexei Navalny's anti-corruption foundation FBK has uncovered real estate, vehicles and luxury goods worth over 500 million rubles belonging to the family of Valery Fyodorov, head of Russia's leading polling organisation VCIOM. Investigators reached this conclusion by analysing financial documents, leaked data and the Instagram account of Fyodorov's 30-year-old second wife Daria Vasileva. Fyodorov has led VCIOM for over 20 years.

Russia's anti-corruption foundation FBK has released an investigation showing that the family of Valery Fyodorov, director of the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM), owns real estate, vehicles and luxury goods with a total value exceeding 500 million rubles.

How the assets were discovered

FBK investigators reached their conclusions by examining financial documents, leaked data and the Instagram account of Fyodorov's 30-year-old second wife Daria Vasileva. The luxury lifestyle displayed on social media is at odds with publicly available state official salary figures, note the foundation's analysts.

Fyodorov has headed VCIOM for over two decades. According to FBK, VCIOM, as a state structure, uses its research to manipulate public opinion in Russia, publishing results that support Kremlin policy.

VCIOM's role in Russia

VCIOM is Russia's largest state-run polling centre, whose findings are regularly cited by both Kremlin officials and Russian state media. Independent analysts have repeatedly questioned the reliability of the organisation's research and the transparency of its methodology.

FBK has previously published several major corruption investigations into senior Russian officials. The foundation continues to operate from abroad following Navalny's arrest and death.