The Orlan-10 drone manufacturer buys electronics in the US, EU and China to circumvent sanctions. Hindenburg Research has accused US motherboard maker Super Micro Computer of years of accounting fraud. Key allegations in relation to Russia: - When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the U.S. government imposed stringent restrictions and bans on exports to Russia of high-performance computers and components. - Super Micro disclosed that some of its products were subject to export bans and said it was halting all sales and had “not recorded revenue” from Russia since the day before the war started. - Exports of Super Micro’s high-tech components to Russia have spiked ~3x since the invasion of Ukraine, apparently violating U.S. export bans, according to our review of more than 45,000 import/export transactions - At least 46 companies that handled Super Micro products to Russia since the invasion are now under OFAC sanctions or on U.S. government watchlists. - Almost two-thirds of Super Micro’s exports to Russia since the invasion correspond to “high priority” components that the Russian military may be diverting to the battlefield, per U.S. government warnings. - One of the biggest importers of Super Micro products in Russia is a supplier to one of Russia’s largest “supercomputers” at a once-secret, now-sanctioned research center. That importer, Niagara Computers, has received at least $46.3 million worth of Super Micro products since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, per trade data. - The sales were initially made through a distributor in California, but were later made through 3 newly-formed Turkish shell companies, including one that was eventually sanctioned for smuggling restricted items to Russia. - Almost $30 million worth of Super Micro components have also been shipped to Russia’s largest importer of dual-use civilian-military chips via a newly created Hong Kong shell entity. That Russian importer is now under OFAC sanctions.