The Government is close to handing over £2.3 billion of proceeds from Roman Abramovich's Chelsea sale to a foundation for Ukraine, but must seek final EU approval.
In what will be one of the biggest charitable donations to war victims in history, the huge sum could be transferred to the as-yet unnamed foundation within weeks.
The cash has been held in a sanctioned account for eight months, but Whitehall officials are understood to be in the process of completing final paperwork.
Government insiders say the new foundation is on the brink of receiving the Charity Commission's approval. However, it is understood they must also get a final green light from Europe as Abramovich is also sanctioned there.
Former Unicef UK chief executive Mike Penrose will head up the foundation under an agreement struck between Government and Abramovich when the Todd Boehly-led Chelsea takeover was sealed in May last year.
Over the next fortnight or so, details of the charity's board and projects will be outlined. Penrose is understood to have been in constant contact with Government and has spent time in Ukraine over 2022.
Some "world renowned" humanitarian and business executives are expected to sit on a newly created independent board. A small fraction of the takeover cash was released last year to allow Penrose to hire lawyers and charity specialists to help him with a legal framework.
Having been on the ground and studied "all the areas heavily affected by conflict", he told Telegraph Sport last year, the foundation can meet an "immediate need to scale up the provision of humanitarian aid including medical equipment, trauma, surgery equipment, and an ability to meet the needs of conflict affected populations near the frontline in sectors such as the provision of food, nutrition, basic services, and very importantly, education as well as medical support".
"There is the need to support Ukrainian institutions that have been overloaded because when you have that level of displacement, obviously you get schools that are suddenly taking in far more children than they are equipped to deal with," he said.
It was Abramovich's idea to launch a foundation when he put the club up for sale at the start of March as he faced UK sanctions over Russia waging war on Ukraine. It is understood that Penrose has never met the billionaire oligarch.
Last year Penrose told Telegraph Sport: "They [Buck and Abramovich's spokesperson] reached out to me because I was the CEO of Unicef UK, I was CEO of Action Contre La Faim in France, I was the Global Humanitarian Director for Save the Children, and the chairman of Soccer Aid," he added.
"They reached out to me to do this but I am creating this independently on my own initiative with support from recognised legal and humanitarian experts.”
Legal undertakings ensure neither Abramovich or Chelsea could ever benefit from the funds intended for the foundation. The agreement to create a foundation was struck with Government amid a fraught two month sale saga last spring. During the ensuing months, officials from the Treasury, Foreign Commonwealth and International Development Office,and DCMS have all been involved in the process to help ensure the foundation is approved by both the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) and the Charity Commission.
