WASHINGTON, DC — The TRIPP+ Enterprise Fund, which will support projects along a trade route passing through Armenia, will be led by Konstantin Sokolov, a Soviet-born American investor based in Chicago, according to the British newspaper The Guardian.
The publication reported that the U.S. State Department confirmed the appointment last Friday.
“Russian-born Chicago private equity investor Konstantin Sokolov will chair the State Department’s new enterprise fund, which will oversee more than $200 million allocated to the Central Asian trade corridor, including investments in transportation, energy infrastructure and critical minerals,” the newspaper wrote, adding that Sokolov has not previously held public office.
The report noted that Sokolov was among 36 donors who contributed funds toward the renovation of a lavish ballroom at the White House backed by U.S. President Donald Trump. The project is estimated to cost $350 million.
The amount of Sokolov’s contribution has not been disclosed. He declined The Guardian’s request for an interview.
According to the State Department, the TRIPP+ Enterprise Fund, which Sokolov founded and will chair, will manage a budget of $201 million. It will be authorized to provide loans and grants and make investments in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Central Asia to support the strategic development of the private sector.
During a visit to Yerevan in February, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance described the TRIPP+ fund as part of a “historic transformation” that would “open an entirely new world of trade, transit and energy flows.”
At the same time, The Guardian reported that it remained unclear how Sokolov or the United States might profit from the fund or whether they would receive compensation for their involvement.
Sokolov is known in Armenia as a co-owner of Viva Armenia, one of the country’s largest telecommunications companies. Viva Armenia recently also acquired shares in another company, Rostelecom Armenia.
In April, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Armenian Service reported that Sokolov was also a potential buyer of the Teghut copper-molybdenum mine.
Sokolov holds a position at Northern Pillar Energy, a partnership involved in clean energy and fiber-optic cable communications linking Africa and Europe. He is also the founder of Chicago-based IJS Investments and Zurich-based Gotthard Investment AG, a company focused on financial services, energy and real estate.
A State Department spokesperson said the fund would comply with U.S. legal requirements concerning annual reporting, independent audits and conflict-of-interest rules in the awarding of grants.
