The footage appears to show former Cypriot Energy Minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis, the Director of the Office of the President of the Republic Charalambos Charalambous, and Cyfield Group executive Giorgos Chrysochos.
In the recording, the individuals can be heard discussing alleged ways of managing funds, as well as mechanisms for gaining access to President Nikos Christodoulides’ inner circle in connection with what are described as “investment initiatives.” The material was reportedly captured with a hidden camera during private conversations.
At one point, Lakkotrypis is heard saying that the funding ceiling stands at around one million euros and that, in order to exceed it, “sometimes they have to rely on cash.” Elsewhere in the video, Charalambous is heard referring to channels of communication within the Presidential Palace, saying that those involved are “the main contacts here at the Palace, next to the President.”
The conversation further suggests that interested parties could approach the President by declaring an intention to undertake business activity and by demonstrating the availability of funds, which could then be directed as contributions under the label of Corporate Social Responsibility. Chrysochos is heard claiming that he has direct access to the President. “If I call him now, he will answer,” he says, adding at another point that his relationship with the President is “like with my girlfriend.” He also states that he speaks freely with the President and meets him every two weeks, while noting that these meetings are kept out of the public eye to avoid creating the impression that assistance is being provided in return.
The Cypriot government has rejected the implications of the video. In a written statement, government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said that, based on an initial assessment by the competent state authorities, the video is considered malicious and the product of editing. According to the government, the material seeks to damage the image of both the administration and the country through false and misleading claims and arbitrary conclusions. Government sources quoted by local media have also suggested that foreign interests, including what they described as a possible “Russian hand,” may be behind the release.
Lakkotrypis, in his own statement, said the video was circulated by a fake account on the social media platform X and falsely presents him as discussing ways to finance President Christodoulides’ election campaign. He argued that the statements attributed to him were edited to distort the context of the conversations, with the aim of harming Cyprus, the President, and himself personally. He also drew attention to the timing of the leak, noting that it came just one day after the opening ceremony of Cyprus’ Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Lakkotrypis said he has filed a complaint with the Criminal Investigation Department in Nicosia and will submit all evidence in his possession.
The controversy has revived broader concerns about transparency and the relationship between political power and private money in Cyprus. In November 2025, the country’s Audit Office concluded an investigation into the Independent Social Support Agency, which is chaired by the spouse of the sitting President. The auditors warned that the agency’s institutional framework creates an unusual and potentially problematic relationship, as it is funded exclusively by private donations while being overseen by the President’s spouse, at a time when the President himself takes decisions that may directly or indirectly affect donating companies.
The audit identified cases in which substantial donations were made by companies that had economic dealings with the state, including firms engaged in negotiations over multi-million-euro contracts at the time the donations were paid. While the report stressed that such cases do not in themselves prove wrongdoing, it cautioned that these circumstances can undermine public trust and concluded that the existing system does not provide sufficient safeguards to ensure institutional integrity where philanthropy intersects with state authority, calling for increased transparency.
Political reaction to the video has been swift and intense. Opposition leaders and lawmakers across the political spectrum have said the footage raises serious ethical, institutional, and political questions and have demanded clear and immediate answers from the government. Several warned that, if even part of what is suggested in the video were proven to be true, the implications would amount to one of the most serious political crises in Cyprus in recent decades.
