Berezovsky, who himself escaped death in a 1994 car bombing, denies any part in the killings.
Berezovsky's political involvement in Russia goes beyond financing Putin's opponents. He retains control of the daily newspapers Kommersant and Nezavisimaya Gazeta, two magazines affiliated with Kommersant, and two Web sites: www.grani.ru and www.kolokol.ru.
Through those outlets, "Berezovsky indirectly influences the formation of public opinion -- not in society but in the political community," said Liliya Shevtsova, a political scientist at the Carnegie Moscow Center.
The tycoon's campaign poses no threat to Putin's chances for re-election. Four of the president's six opponents have poll ratings in the low single digits, and the other two openly say they hope Putin will win.
What makes Berezovsky worrisome to the Kremlin is his reputation as the holder of a trove of possibly compromising information on Russia's political and business leaders dating back to his time as a member of Yeltsin's Security Council.
"As a man who occupied government posts that gave him access to information, himself having taken part in some political schemes under the carpet, of course he has some information he can throw out," said Leonid Sedov, a sociologist with the independent Levada Analytical Service.
The presidential candidate that Berezovsky is backing, Liberal Russia member Ivan Rybkin, hinted at this early last month. He published a full-page letter in Kommersant saying he had information about Putin's involvement in business that would undermine the president's campaign against the "oligarchs," the nickname for Berezovsky and a handful of other men who became immensely rich under Yeltsin.
While arguing that the election is unfairly tilted toward Putin, Berezovsky said it still gives the opposition a rare chance to make its voice heard. By law, state-run television has to provide air time to all the candidates, no matter how dismal their chances.
"It's a unique opportunity to present an opinion which is different, opposite to, official power in Russia," Berezovsky said.
He said he was heartened by the conclusion of human rights groups that the autumn elections confirming the Kremlin-backed president in Chechnya were fraudulent and by the contention of Western election observers that Russia's parliamentary elections in December were unfair, largely because the largest Kremlin-backed party had a huge advantage in state media coverage.
The presidential election campaign is no more fair, Berezovsky said. If anything, the media is giving even more free and flattering advertising to Putin.
"We want to press Europe and the United States, first of all, to make a clear statement as far as the presidential election is concerned," Berezovsky said.
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