Senators Choose Business or Power

File Photo of Man Placing Stack of Large Bills into Inside Pocket of Suitcoat

(Moscow Times/RIA Novosti – July 16, 2013) Though the spring session of the upper house of parliament is over, it might not signal an end to the steady stream of wealthy senators who have stepped down as the Kremlin put forward new restrictions on officials owning assets abroad. The nine members of the 166-seat Federation Council who have left since […]

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Customs Union Frauds Behind 40% of Russia Capital Flight

File Photo of Man Placing Stack of Large Bills into Inside Pocket of Suitcoat

(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, June 20, 2013) Fictitious import contracts with entities from Customs Union member states Belarus and Kazakhstan accounted for 40 percent of Russia’s net capital outflow last year, business daily Vedomosti reported on Thursday citing Central Bank data. About $10 billion could have been laundered through fake imports schemes via Kazakhstan, the Central Bank said in a […]

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Putin to Let Foreign Banks Check Out Officials

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(Moscow TImes – themoscowtimes.com – June 10, 2013) President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree allowing foreign banks and international organizations to check foreign property belonging to election candidates running for positions in state bodies, a news report said Monday. The new law will affect all federal and regional elected officials including the president, State Duma deputies, governors and heads […]

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Russian Capital Flight Continues Unabated – Central Banker

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(RIA Novosti -ST. PETERSBURG, June 5, 2013) ­ Russian capital flight remains rampant, with no signs of slowing down, Central Bank chief Sergei Ignatyev said on Wednesday. “Unfortunately, capital outflow remains very high, I dare say. No fall in this trend can be seen,” Ignatyev said. He made headlines in February when he claimed a small group of well-connected individuals […]

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Medvedev: government officials should share economic risks by keeping money in Russia

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(Interfax – MOSCOW, May 22, 2013) Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev believes that government officials and members of parliament should share economic risks with the rest of the country and keep their money in Russian banks, but he is not convinced that they should be prohibited from holding foreign assets. “Members of the government, State Duma deputies, administration officials should after […]

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Ban on Foreign Holdings Gives Kremlin Muscovy-Like Control, Commentator Says

File Photo of Man Placing Stack of Large Bills into Inside Pocket of Suitcoat

(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, May 10 ­ New Russia legislation to prevent officials from having cash or stock accounts abroad, promoted by the regime as a step toward “the nationalization of the elite,” brings Russia into line with countries like Bangladesh rather than the West and gives the Kremlin powers much like those of medieval Muscovy, […]

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Russia’s 20 Biggest Billionaires Keep Riches From Putin

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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Robert LaFranco & Alex Sazonov – May 1, 2013) Alisher Usmanov, Russia’s richest person, moved control of most of his $20 billion fortune last year to a holding company based in the British Virgin Islands, a collection of more than 60 isles 5,600 miles away from Moscow. The company, USM Holdings, controls the billionaire’s most valuable […]

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Belousov upbeat about investment inflow, says capital flight a myth

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(Interfax – SOCHI, April 22, 2013) Economic Development Minister Andrei Belousov has described claims that capital outflow from Russia has assumed a “gigantic” scope as a myth. “Assertions that capital outflow has assumed a gigantic scope, and that there are signs of capital flight are a myth,” Belousov told reporters after a meeting on economic issues chaired by President Vladimir […]

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Long-term consequences of extraordinary measures taken in Cyprus are not known yet – Putin

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(Interfax – SOCHI, April 22, 2013) Russian President Vladimir Putin said the long-term consequences of the extraordinary measures taken in Cyprus are not known yet. “We see what methods of resolving debt problems are used on specific countries, I mean Cyprus, where the measures that have been taken essentially undermine confidence in the financial system,” Putin told a meeting on […]

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Gref opposes internal offshore zones, proposes steps to bring capital back to Russia

File Photo of German Gref Shaking Hands with U.S. Official

(Interfax – MOSCOW, April 19, 2013) The president and CEO of leading Russian lender Sberbank (RTS: SBER), German Gref opposes the idea of creating internal offshore zones in Russia, but is proposing that special measures be developed to bring capital back to the country, possibly even an amnesty for capital that now flees to offshore jurisdictions. “I don’t really believe […]

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Russians want to know MP’s income, spending, would ban foreign assets – poll

Duma Session file photo

(Interfax –  Moscow, April 15, 2013) Only 4 per cent of Russian do not care what incomes State Duma deputies have, while the vast majority (92 per cent) would like to know this and therefore support the use of such measures as mandatory declaration of incomes and spending for the elected representatives of the people. Some 90 per cent of […]

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Russian Cabinet Member to Repatriate Assets as Restrictions Loom

Igor Shuvalov file photo

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Olga Tanas & Scott Rose – April 12, 2013) Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov and his wife, the second-biggest earners among families of Cabinet members, plan to move their assets under Russian jurisdiction to comply with new restrictions. Shuvalov and his wife Olga are planning to shift their foreign holdings, Alexander Machevsky, a spokesman […]

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Kremlin advises officials to start closing foreign accounts, including those in CIS

Map of Western CIS/FSU and European Environs

(Interfax – MOSCOW, April 11, 2013) Russian state officials, reporting their income and expenses exceeding joint income of their families for three years, will have to declare foreign bank accounts and securities kept not only in foreign banks but in banks of the Customs Union and the CIS as well, aide of the Russian State Presidential Legal Directorate, Valentin Mikhailov, […]

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What drives ‘nationalization’ of Russia’s elite?

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Georgy Bovt, special to RBTH – April 12, 2013) Georgy Bovt is a prominent Russian columnist and political expert.   The Russian anti-corruption campaign gains momentum. Will the Russian public be in favor of even stronger measures? Russia’s anti-corruption campaign looks like an attempt to “nationalize” the state elite by increasing their stakes […]

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Capital outflow from funds investing in Russian stocks breaks record again – experts

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(Interfax – MOSCOW. April 12, 2013) Capital outflow from funds investing in Russian stocks was at its highest in the last half year in the week of April 4-10, totaling $393 million, compared to $68 million the previous week, according to Emerging Portfolio Fund Research (EPFR) data. From the beginning of this year to April 10, total outflow from funds […]

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Corruption Should Carry Same Penalty as Treason – Watchdog

Cropped File Photo of Two Men in Business Suits Shaking Hands and Passing Cash

(RIA Novosti – MOSCOW, April 10, 2013) ­ The punishment for those found guilty of corruption should be as severe as for treason, Kirill Kabanov, head of Russia’s National Anti-Corruption Committee independent watchdog said on Wednesday. “We believe the penalty for corrupt activities should be equal to that in place for treason,” said Kabanov, who is also director of the […]

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Russians eyeing foreign property with caution in crisis

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(Moscow News – themoscownews.com – Nathan Gray – April 8, 2013) The ongoing financial crisis may be hitting European economies hard, but the continent retains a good deal of interest for Russian customers looking to invest in property abroad. Reasons vary according to country, of course: prestige in Britain, skiing in Switzerland and Austria, warm climates in Spain, Italy and […]

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Russia Agreed to Restructure Bailout Loan to Cyprus, Putin Says

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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Olga Tanas – April 8, 2013) Russia agreed to restructure a 2.5 billion-euro ($3.3 billion) loan granted to Cyprus in 2011, bowing to a request by the European Commission, President Vladimir Putin said. “We are making our own contribution” to help the island, Putin told reporters today at a joint briefing in Hanover with German Chancellor […]

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Russian officials should have to invest in Russian securities – central banker

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(Interfax – MOSCOW. April 4, 2013) All Russian government officials should be obligated to invest their money in the securities of Russian issuers, deputy Central Bank chairman Sergei Shvetsov said. “Today a large number of officials disclose their assets, and we see vehicles, dachas and land there, we very rarely see mutual funds, Russian securities. The presence of securities in […]

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Offshore Investigation Threatens to Embarrass Kremlin

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – April 5, 2013) A leak of details about offshore bank accounts belonging to Russian businesspeople and the wife of First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov threatens to embarrass President Vladimir Putin, who has vowed to crack down on the use of tax havens. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, a network of 160 journalists around […]

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Church official recommends elite to bring their funds back to Russia

Archpriest Vsevolad Chaplin file photo

(Interfax / Religion – Moscow, April 3, 2013) The Russian church official urges Russian elite to realize their responsibility before nation and make their capitals work for the welfare of the Russian economic system. “Our elite has to consider attentively the signs of time and think whether it is time to change, to restore their connections with people and make […]

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Putin Ramps Up Declaration Requirements

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – April 3, 2013 – Jonathan Earle) President Vladimir Putin has expanded declaration requirements for more than 1.3 million state employees and given the Kremlin the power to demand and check disclosures, significant steps toward carrying out the government’s stalled anti-corruption plan. While the government hailed the moves, laid out in two decrees signed by Putin […]

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Russia Won’t Bail Out Cyprus Savers Facing Deposit Losses

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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Scott Rose – April 1, 2013) Russia won’t bail out people or companies that stand to lose money held at Cyprus’s two largest banks, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said. “If someone gets stuck and loses money in those two biggest banks, that’s really too bad,” Shuvalov said in an interview late yesterday on Russian […]

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Medvedev Calls Cyprus Plan ‘Absurd’

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Irina Filatova and Howard Amos – March 22, 2013) Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday intensified his criticism of a plan by European financial authorities to rescue the Cypriot economy, labeling it as “completely absurd,” in the most colorful response yet by Russian officials to the controversial measures. The proposal to impose a one-time levy […]

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EU, Cyprus Act ‘Like Bull in China Shop’ – Russian PM

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GORKI (Moscow Region), March 20 (RIA Novosti) ­ Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday slammed the European Union and Cyprus for what he described as their dismal management of the island nation’s debt woes. Medvedev told journalists from European media outlets in an interview that the mishandling of the crisis had undermined confidence in financial institutions, in Cyprus and […]

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Interview: Russian Economist Discusses Moscow’s Stance On Cyprus Crisis

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(RFE/RL – rferl.org – March 20, 2013) As the financial crisis deepens in Cyprus, attention is focusing on Russia’s role in preventing the Mediterranean island nation from going bankrupt and exiting the eurozone. RFE/RL’s Claire Bigg spoke to Natalya Orlova, chief economist at Alfa Bank. RFE/RL: Michael Sarris, the Cypriot finance minister, was in Moscow this week to discuss the […]

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Cyprus Fails to Obtain Kremlin Aid

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Howard Amos and Irina Filatova – March 21, 2013) A desperate effort by Cypriot authorities to win financial aid from the Kremlin failed to yield any results Wednesday, as a deal eluded Cyprus’ finance minister, Michalis Sarris, during a visit to Moscow. Russian companies are being hit by a freeze on Cypriot bank accounts as […]

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Russia, Cyprus to Continue Vital Loan Talks

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MOSCOW, March 20 (RIA Novosti) ­ Cypriot Finance Minister Michael Sarris is set to continue negotiations on a potential Russian loan with Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov on Wednesday, after initial talks between the two countries’ finance ministries ended without an agreement. The Cypriot minister is in Moscow to discuss the extension of a 2.5-billion-euro loan that Russia […]

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Capital outflow from Russia slows to $6 bln in Feb – Klepach

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MOSCOW. March 20 (Interfax) – Capital outflow from Russia was approximately $6 billion in February, Deputy Economic Development Minister Andrei Klepach told reporters. “Our estimate so far is about $6 billion,” Klepach said. In other words, outflow slowed in February but outflow for the first two months of the year was still above the official forecast for the whole year. […]

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Capital Outflow Exceeded Annual Forecast In Just 2 Months

File Photo of Man Placing Stack of Large Bills into Inside Pocket of Suitcoat

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – March 20, 2013) Net capital outflow from the Russian economy has already exceeded the official forecast for the whole of 2013, despite slowing down moderately in February, Deputy Economic Development Minister Andrei Klepach said Wednesday. According to the ministry’s estimate, capital outflow in February was about $6 billion, whereas in January the Russian economy leaked […]

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Rival Ideas for Cyprus Aid Pop Up in Russia

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Anatoly Medetsky – March 20, 2013) The sudden prospect that billions of dollars of Russian money might never return to its owners, due to part of the Cyprus bailout plan, evoked a slate of proposals here Tuesday to prevent the damage. VTB, the country’s second-largest lender, which has a subsidiary in Cyprus, laid out a […]

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Experts Shed Light on Russia’s Capital Flight

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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Ben Aris, special to RBTH – March 11, 2013) Some $350 billion has fled Russia since the 2008 global crisis. But things aren’t as bad as they seem. Genuine capital flight is only half the official figure, according to a new study by Ernst & Young, together with the Russian Direct Investment Fund […]

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Putin’s War on Three Fronts

Duma Session file photo

(Institute of Modern Russia – www.imrussia.org – Tatiana Stanovaya – February 25, 2013 – click here for original posting of article) Two important tendencies have marked Russian political life during the past few months. The first is the Kremlin’s attempt to control officials’ and lawmakers’ foreign accounts and real estate holdings. The second is the growing activity of independent bloggers […]

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West Vastly Underestimating Size of Illegal Capital Flight from Russia, Moscow Expert Says

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(Window on Eurasia – Paul Goble – Staunton, February 22, 2013 – http://windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2013/02/window-on-eurasia-west-vastly.html) A report by the Washington Center for International Policy’s Global Financial Integrity program suggests that illegal capital flight from the Russian Federation over the last 17 years has been “stupifyingly” large, but in fact, a Russian economic analyst says, the report’s figures understate the size and implications […]

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Civil servants may have problems selling their foreign assets – Kremlin representative

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MOSCOW. Feb 22 (Interfax) – President Vladimir Putin’s representative in the State Duma Garri Minkh has acknowledged that government executives may have problems selling their assets and foreign company shares in compliance with the president-proposed bill. “The procedure of selling shares is not so easy. Not so easy as selling a glass of sunflower seeds,” Minkh said during the first […]

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Nearly 90% of Russians support ban on foreign bank accounts of officials – poll

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MOSCOW. Feb 21 (Interfax) – Support of the Russian public to President Vladimir Putin’s bill banning foreign bank accounts of civil servants is practically unanimous, the Public Opinion Foundation said. It polled 1,500 respondents in 100 towns and cities in 43 regions on February 16-17. Seventy-three percent heard about the bill, and 26% learned about it during the poll. From […]

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Illicit capital flight over $780 billion since 1994

File Photo of Man Placing Stack of Large Bills into Inside Pocket of Suitcoat

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – www.rbth.ru – Ben Aris, special to RBTH – Februray 19, 2013) The size of Russia’s shadow economy undermines recent efforts to improve the business climate. Russia has lost $782.5 billion in “illicit” capital flight over the last 18 years while $552.9 billion of illegal money has entered the country over the same period of time, […]

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Russia Illicit Outflow Reached $212 Billion, Study Says

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(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Scott Rose – February 12, 2013) Illicit capital outflows from Russia were as much as $211.5 billion between 1994 and 2011 as the underground economy moved funds abroad, according to Global Financial Integrity, a group that studies financial flows. Total illicit outflows were $9.99 billion in 2011, down from a peak of $41.6 billion in 2010, […]

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Putin Submits Bill Banning Officials From Holding Foreign Assets

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Alexander Winning – February 13, 2013) President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday submitted a bill to the State Duma that seeks to ban government officials from holding overseas bank accounts or owning foreign-issued bonds and shares. The legislation, part of a raft of measures proposed by the president that ostensibly target corruption and foreign influence in […]

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Putin Moves to Ban Foreign Bank Accounts for Officials

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MOSCOW, February 12 (RIA Novosti) ­ President Vladimir Putin has submitted a bill to the State Duma prohibiting Russian officials from holding bank accounts abroad or owning foreign-issued shares and bonds, according to information posted on the Duma’s website. “This ban applies to persons who hold government positions in Russia, the Prosecutor General’s first and other deputies, members of the […]

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Russia hopes to bring offshore business back to Russia

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MOSCOW. Feb 11 (Interfax) – The Russian Presidential Experts Directorate has compiled several measures aimed at de-offshorization of the Russian economy, the head of the directorate, Ksenia Yudaeva, said. As well as privatization inside Russia, reforming regulations for investing pension savings and easing the tax regime for investors, the measures suggested include the creation of a special arbitration court and […]

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Ulyukayev Considers $10Bln Quarterly Flight ‘Acceptable’

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Howard Amos – January 17, 2013) A capital outflow of up to $10 billion every three months would be an acceptable level under current macroeconomic conditions, a leading figure at the Central Bank said. Russia saw $56.8 billion leave the country in 2012, stoking fears that the Kremlin is struggling to control capital flight and […]

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Putin: Capital Outflow Is Russian Business Expansion Abroad

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MOSCOW, December 27 (RIA Novosti) ­ Officially registered capital outflow from Russia frequently reflects Russian business investment abroad, President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday. “As for capital outflow, this process is not viewed as simplistically as is frequently talked about. Capital outflow in our conditions does not mean direct capital flight,” he said. A substantial part of this capital is […]

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Central Banker Blames Capital Flight on Investment Climate

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MOSCOW, December 19 (RIA Novosti) ­ Russia’s unfavorable investment climate is a major factor behind huge capital flight from the country in recent years, Central Bank Chairman Sergei Ignatyev said on Wednesday. The Central Bank has carried out a comparative research of capital outflows in other countries to understand why capital is leaving Russia on such a large scale, the […]

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Capital Flight Calculation Open for Debate

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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Irina Filatova – Dec. 18, 2012) The real size of capital outflow last year was actually half as much as reported, and only reached about $40 billion, with the figure having no correlation to the investment climate, according to a survey released Monday. Some components considered by the Central Bank, such as cash leaving the […]

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Putin Targets Transparency of Offshore Companies

Empty Boardroom

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Irina Filatova – Dec. 13, 2012) President Vladimir Putin expanded Russian vocabulary Wednesday, as he called for “deoffshorization” of the country’s economy, a measure he said would help repatriate capital channeled to offshore jurisdictions. In his state-of-the-nation address, which covered a wide range of economic issues, Putin pushed for agreements with tax havens that would […]

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Capital Outflow May Hit $70 Bln Says Minister

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MOSCOW, November 20 (RIA Novosti) ­ Russia’s capital outflow may reach $70 billion in 2012, more than the previous forecast of $60-65 billion, Deputy Economic Development Minister Andrei Klepach said on Tuesday. “We’ll specify the figure by December. Perhaps, it will be slightly larger [than the Central Bank’s estimate of $67 billion] at $70 billion, or may be less” Klepach […]

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NEWSLINK: Hand-wringing at dinner with Putin

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Hand-wringing at dinner with Putin – Financial Times – Neil Buckley – October 25, 2012 – http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ced25a3a-1deb-11e2-901e-00144feabdc0.html The Financial Times examines growing limitations on Russian economic prospects, and the resulting impact on the latest “Valdai Discussion Club” dinner: … the event, and the context, has changed a lot. In Valdai’s early years, Russia was growing at 7 per cent a […]

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Capital Outflow From Russia Will Save Economy From Overheat – Moiseyev

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TOKYO. Oct 12 (Interfax) – The capital outflow to which Russia has fallen victim over the last several months will protect the country’s economy from a possible overheat, Russian Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseyev said in conversation with the press on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank in Tokyo. “My […]

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Russian Deputy Finance Minister Denies Abnormal Capital Flight From Country

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(Interfax – Bishkek, 20 September) The leadership of the (Russian) Ministry of Finance is sceptical about pessimistic takes and forecasts on the outflow of capital from Russia and believes that there are no grounds for this – that this is ordinary banking practice. “I see no indication of there being a withdrawal of funds from Russia. What people are calling […]

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