Year: 2008

August 6, 2008

Video: Corporate Raiding in Action

There’s been a lot of talk about the practice of “corporate raiding” in Russia lately, from TNK-BP to the president to William Browder (though the concept dates back to the 1990s). But this video, courtesy of the recent shuttered...
August 6, 2008

Grigory Pasko: On the Invention of Working Vacations

The young pregnant military serviceman Response apropos By Grigory Pasko, journalist The information agency RIA Novosti has reported that president of Russia Dmitry Medvedev left from 4 August on a week-long working vacation. It is expected that u...
August 6, 2008

Murdoch on Russia: Sell Now

Media magnate and head of News Corp, Rupert Murdoch, has offered his two cents on Russian investment, as quoted in today’s Financial Times: Speaking from Beijing, Mr Murdoch signaled News Corp’s growing enthusiasm for Asian markets – particularly ...
August 6, 2008

Energy Blast – Aug 6, 2008

Russia’s Federal Anti-Monopoly Agency is threatening legal measures against executives who fail to co-operate after several Russian oil companies refused to provide data on fuel prices. State-owned Transneft has improved its share price by r...
August 6, 2008

Today in Russian Business – Aug 6, 2008

Russia’s arms sales are set to reach a new post-Soviet record with weapons exports exceeding $8 billion this year. Mikhail Prokhorov’s Onexim Group has agreed to sell 16% of Norilsk Nickel to Vladimir Potanin’s Interros. The New York T...
August 6, 2008

RA’s Daily Russia News Blast – Aug 6, 2008

TODAY: Former mayor of Stavropol linked to A Just Russia to be charge with theft; newspaper editor flees Russia; Medvedev trying to weaken Sechin?; Russian gang infect computer networks; mourners visit Solzhenitsyn’s coffin; Kremlin “offended” by ...
August 5, 2008

Grigory Pasko: Solzhenitsyn has died…

Solzhenitsyn has died… By Grigory Pasko I recall how back when I was in the military-political college, I surreptitiously read «One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich», Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s forbidden tale about prisoners of the GULAG, hi...
August 5, 2008

Prokhorov and Potanin Swap Stocks – With a Twist

Consolidation is the word – at least where Russia’s mining assets are concerned. It has just emerged that billionaires Mikhail Prokhorov and Vladimir Potanin have agreed to swap 16.7% of Norilsk Nickel for 35% of Polyus Gold, with both subse...
August 5, 2008

The New Old Government Personnel

Late last month, Dmitry Medvedev hit out at the “outrageous” Kremlin practice of selling government posts, promising to solve the problem by handpicking personnel for government positions. You may have thought the solution sounded somewhat off-key...
August 5, 2008

Energy Blast – Aug 5, 2008

James Owen, TNK-BP’s chief financial officer, says he resigned because the dispute between the company’s British and Russian owners prevented him from fulfilling his duties. New statistics suggest that Russia’s crude oil production, ex...