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Russian Oligarchy Is Dead. About Time.
“The most cataclysmic peacetime economic collapse of an industrial country in history.”
That’s what happened in Russia thirty-two years ago.
Before perestroika, businesses and major properties were all owned by the state. People owned things like cars and clothes. The state owned things like corporations and natural resources.
Then, the Soviet Union collapsed. The first president, Boris Yeltsin, made a forced turn into market economy.
They started privatization of said corporations and natural resources, which basically meant selling them for pennies to friends and family. Suddenly, being someone’s cousin became the most profitable skill in Russia.
These people — some call them oligarchs — enjoyed thirty-two years of megayachts, mansions and mistresses. They sold gas and got rich. They pimped out their country and grew fat on it.
Unfortunately, all good things come to an end.
The Fall of Roman’s Empire
Roman Abramovich may have been an average student, but he was always an exceptional opportunist.
While in the military, he used to sell stolen gasoline to his commanding officers. Once out, he made a living selling rubber ducks out of his apartment — illegally…
