April 19, 2023

More War, More Debts, More Money


More War, More Debts, More Money
Vladimir Putin, his wife Lyudmila, and Jacques Chirac at the military parade celebrating the sixtieth anniversary of victory in World War II. ITAR-TASS, Wikimedia Commons

According to Telegram channel Mozhem Obyasnit, the microfinance company CarMoney, which has ties with Putin’s ex-wife Lyudmila Ochertnaya, increased its profits by 66% in 2022 and earned R391.3 million ($4.7 million). Ochertnaya herself received R58 million (about $700,000) from CarMoney.

CarMoney is a microfinance company that issues loans secured by cars. The company appeared in 2010 but did not really grow until Ocheretnaya entered the game. Since 2017, CarMoney has been taken over by the Cyprus-based offshore company Carmoney CY LTD, which, according to Mozhem Obyasnit, is controlled by Meridian. This company in turn is owned by the ex-wife of the Russian president. 

However, at the end of 2022, the Cyprus-based offshore formally ceased to be the owner of the microfinance organization, switching instead to "Smarttechgrup." As such, CarMoney was able to avoid Western sanctions.

However, Ochertnaya still retains control over the company. Mozhem Obyasnit reported that Anton Zinoviev, CEO of the new owner of CarMoney, is Ocheretnaya’s partner in the smartphone rental business Zaprosto. And the company’s office is located in a building owned by Ocheretnaya and her new husband, Arthur Ocheretny.

CarMoney has increased its profits amid a boom in microloans. By the end of 2022, microfinance companies in Russia increased grew their customer base by 3.1 million. In general, as of the beginning of 2023, the number of Russians with microcredits reached a record 17.1 million. After the start of the mobilization in Russia, microfinance organizations began to issue loans for the purchase of bulletproof vests and other war equipment.

At the same time, the overall economic situation in the country has deteriorated significantly over the year of the war. The expected deficit of the Russian budget will reach 3 percent this year, the Russian middle class (about 30 percent of the population) saw their real income drop by 5 percent, and, for the Russian population as a whole, the drop in income has been 2.2 percent.

 

You Might Also Like

400 Days
  • March 30, 2023

400 Days

On this, the 400th Day of Russia's War on Ukraine, we gather and share some telling data.
No Money, Only War
  • March 29, 2023

No Money, Only War

Russian authorities blame the "special military operation" for the disruption of infrastructural and social projects.
No Money, No AI
  • January 23, 2023

No Money, No AI

Russia has reduced its funding of AI technologies and IT professionals are fleeing the country in droves.
While Supplies Last
  • December 20, 2022

While Supplies Last

Prices for Moscow real estate, usually a hot market, are down a record 35 percent.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Woe From Wit (bilingual)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
The Latchkey Murders

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...
The Little Humpbacked Horse

The Little Humpbacked Horse

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
Russia Rules

Russia Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.
The Moscow Eccentric

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.
The Little Golden Calf

The Little Golden Calf

Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
The Samovar Murders

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.
A Taste of Chekhov

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
PO Box 567
Montpelier VT 05601-0567

802-223-4955