The Kantor Charitable Foundation (1173550) was registered in 2017 and is a grant-making trust, applying funds to charitable causes in England and Wales at the discretion of the trustees.
The charity's current trustee is a corporate entity, the Kantor Trustees, of which Dr Kantor is a director.
On 6 April 2022, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office sanctioned Dr Kantor under the UK's Russia Sanctions regime, meaning he is now subject to a full asset freeze and his name appears on the 'UK Sanctions List' as a designated person.
The Commission's position is that individuals subject to UK financial sanctions cannot discharge their duties as a trustee of a charity.
The Commission opened an inquiry on 7 April 2022 to:
- Determine whether the charity can continue to operate and is viable following sanctions being imposed on the founder.
- Consider the conduct of the trustees and whether they have discharged their legal duties and responsibilities in their management and administration of the charity.
The regulator has frozen the charity's bank account, meaning no one can access or move funds held in its account without the Commission's prior consent.
The Commission may extend the scope of the inquiry if additional issues emerge.
