Hunter Biden, Andrew Cuomo and the Russian Billionaire

A Senate report finds another big flow of questionable cash.

Hunter Biden, son of former Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, appears in a video at the virtual Democratic National Convention in August.

Photo: DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION/AFP/Getty Images

How many millions of dollars did Hunter Biden collect from foreign tycoons while his father was vice president? A new Senate report makes some headway toward answering this question. As for the related question of what exactly Joe Biden’s son was supposedly doing in return for this gusher of foreign money, Americans are still waiting for a precise answer.

Hunter Biden’s lucrative arrangements in Ukrainian natural gas, Chinese finance and Romanian real estate have been attracting attention because he had no particular expertise in Ukrainian natural gas, Chinese finance or Romanian real estate. But he did have a father who was leading U.S. policy in these countries.

Now Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R., Wis.), and Senate Finance Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) report on still more income sources for Hunter Biden ventures, including a Russian billionaire named Elena Baturina.

The Senators report today:

On Feb. 14, 2014, Baturina wired $3.5 million to a Rosemont Seneca Thornton LLC (Rosemont Seneca Thornton) bank account for a “Consultancy Agreement DD12.02.2014.” Rosemont Seneca Thornton is an investment firm co-founded by Hunter Biden that was incorporated on May 28, 2013 in Wilmington, Del.

Consulting is a wonderfully vague description of the services rendered. Was Ms. Baturina, who made her fortune in Moscow real estate, paying for Mr. Biden’s sage financial advice? As with other Hunter Biden deals struck while his father was vice president, this one appears to be a highly lucrative arrangement for which Hunter Biden was not highly qualified. What exactly did Ms. Baturina think she was buying? The Senators also report:

Separately, between May 6, 2015 and Dec. 8, 2015, Baturina sent 11 wires in the amount of $391,968.21 to a bank account belonging to BAK USA LLC (BAK USA). Nine of the 11 transactions, totaling $241,797.14 were sent from Baturina’s accounts to a Rosemont Seneca Thornton bank account, which then transferred to the money to BAK USA. The 11 transactions all listed “Loan Agreement” in the payment details section. BAK USA was a startup technology company headquartered in Buffalo, N.Y., that produced tablet computers in cooperation with unnamed Chinese business partners.

Will we now be treated to a lengthy explanation of Hunter Biden’s previously unreported passion for computer manufacturing? This connection is interesting because at the time Bak USA just happened to be serving as a model for a particular tax-break scheme promoted by another prominent politician.

A few months before the first Baturina wire transfer to Bak, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D., N.Y.) announced in a press release the grand opening of the company’s new global headquarters, which he counted as a win for his program to bring jobs to the Empire State:

“Bak’s decision to locate its global headquarters in Buffalo is another success story for this city and for START-UP NY,” Governor Cuomo said.

The next year on Facebook, Gov. Cuomo said:

BAK USA’s success is a significant victory for the city of Buffalo, the START-UP NY program, and the future of American-made technology products.

In comments posted in response, some questioned why the state had to provide tax breaks for such ventures. One commenter noted that simply allowing fracking in New York would create more jobs.

But Mr. Cuomo seems to have been determined to present Bak as a validation of his model. In 2017 another press release proclaimed:

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the expansion of the global headquarters of Bak USA, one of the first American firms to produce its own-branded electronic tablets, is complete... “Buffalo has become a leader in high-tech manufacturing and Bak USA’s newly completed expansion in the heart of the city means new jobs, more economic activity and more momentum for a region already on the move.” Governor Cuomo said. “Bak USA’s successful expansion in Western New York is yet another example of companies coming to New York and staying here to grow their businesses in our state.”

The following year Bak USA went out of business.

In 2019 Stephen Watson of the Buffalo News reported, “The company’s recent filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation shows Bak USA has $39.4 million in debts and just $147,000 in assets.”

There seem to be plenty of questions here for the workers and taxpayers of New York State and for all the voters of the United States.

Speaking of odd arrangements involving Hunter Biden and large checks from foreign oligarchs, the Senators have come up with an estimate of the amount collected by him and his associates from that Ukrainian energy firm—more than $4 million.