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Russia Bails Out Its Richest Men
October 30, 2008 12:37 PM
By CLARISSA WARD, Correspondent, ABC News Moscow
In 1998, when Russia was in the throes of a devastating financial crisis, a group of very rich young tycoons, known as “the oligarchs,” stepped in and bailed out the country. How quickly things change. Ten years later, it’s the government that’s doing the bailing out and it’s the government that will decide which oligarchs to save and which to cut loose.
In the last six months Russia’s 25 richest men have lost more than $230 billion, according to a report by Bloomberg News. On Wednesday night, Russia’s state development bank announced that it would lend $10 billion to Russia’s oligarchs as part of a larger $50 billion bailout that many say could shake up the Russian contingent of the Forbes rich list.
One of the men getting a piece of the pie is Oleg Deripaska, Russia’s richest man. His company RusAl will receive $4.5 billion to refinance a Western loan due this week. Deripaska is a personal friend of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. Putin skis on the man-made mountain in the grounds of Deripaska’s country house. Multibillionaire Mickhail Fridman’s Alfa Group will also receive part of the state bailout funds. But the real question is, which oligarchs won’t be bailed out… and why?
In the last week, Russia’s international reserves fell a record $31 billion and not everyone in the country will be happy that the richest men in the country are getting a big chunk of that. But with minimal coverage of the crisis in the mainstream media and with confidence in President Dimitry Medvedev and Putin still very high, most Russians won’t really care.
Read more blogs from Clarissa Ward
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October 30, 2008 in Clarissa Ward | Permalink | User Comments (4)
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McCain wants to do the same thing. Hecj look at Exon They don't even need it>
Posted by: Thinking | Oct 30, 2008 1:05:20 PM
When the Hunt brothers tried to corner the market in silver and it blew up in their faces, the US federal government bailed them out with taxpayer's money during the Ford administration.
We can't expect Russia to be less sympathetic to wealthy campaign contributors!
Posted by: Mickey | Oct 30, 2008 4:56:53 PM
THis is peanuts---4.5 Billion--thats how much 19 CEO's that have yet to be chased down ran away with from our700 oops now what is it 1.5 trillion? Our country has 10 times the corruption of Russia yet we try to point the finger and say oh look at this---this story is irrelevant...
Posted by: tom | Oct 30, 2008 6:41:47 PM
Does this mean McCain is more communist
that Obama is socialist?
Posted by: spacerook1 | Nov 1, 2008 10:15:09 PM
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