bill browder

🎙️: https://atlasgeographica.com/bill-browder/

🍻☕: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/ryanhogg

The following is a conversation with the CEO and Founder of the Hermitage Fund, Bill Browder. The Hermitage Fund was at one time, the largest source of western capital in Russia and in 1997 the best performing fund in the world.

Bill is also one of the sharpest thorns in the Russian oligarch's side. He lobbied for a law that authorises the U.S. government to sanction foreign government officials worldwide who are deemed to be human rights offenders and freeze their assets, this was named the Magntizky Act after his former lawyer Sergei Magnitzky who was tortured and murdered in a Russian prison.

Bill Browder is the author of both Red Notice, and Freezing Order... which are the catalyst for this chat.

Newsletter 📋 🔑 - https://atlasgeographica.com/subscribe
📷 Instagram & Twitter 🐦 
-----

• 00:00 – Introduction.
• 01:52 – Perestroika & The Voucher System In Post-Soviet Russia.
• 11:41 – How The Russian Oligarchs Were Formed.
• 17:55 – Bill’s Experience In Murmansk.
• 25:03 – Hermitage Capital, Solomon Brothers & Being A Dirty Capitalist.
• 35:49 – The Role Of Serendipity In Bill’s Life.
• 41:20 – Freezing Order, Money Laundering & Offshore Finance
• 49:34 – London & Money Laundering.
• 52:52 – If Bill Was 25 Today, Where Would He Go & What Would He Do?

Episodes Of The Curious Worldview Podcast Mentioned.

• Jim Henry – Blood Bankers
• John Perkins – Confessions Of An Economic Hitman
• Nic Shaxson – The Tools Of The Offshore Accountant
• Bradley Hope – Jho Low & 1MDB Financial Fraud
• Nathan Lynch – Money Laundering In Australia
• Oliver Bullough – Moneyland
• Podcast Starter Pack – Offshore Finance

Hi guys! Today I am talking about the political thriller, "Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man's Quest for Justice" by Bill Browder. This book is a look behind the curtain into the gangster oligarchs running Russia from behind the scenes, how they seized power after the fall of the Soviet Union during the era of privatization, and how Vladimir Putin rose to become the kingpin of the whole thing. The book was written by an American who finds himself caught up in a political struggle between all these parties, has a good friend murdered, and ends up on an Interpol most-wanted "Red Notice" board. The Russians want him bad, and if you want to know why, you'll have to listen to this episode! I think you'll get a kick out of it.

Thanks for listening! If you like the show, please feel free to share it with someone who you think might get a kick out of it. If you LOVE the show and you'd like to support it financially, head over to my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/whatstomreading

As always, thank you so much for listening and for all your support. It means the world to me!

The Cold War is over and 70 years of Communist rule is flushed away. In Soviet Russia, capitalists risked being shot, but with Communism gone, Mikhail Khodorkovsky started a small bank, Menatep, before rising to run one of the world’s most profitable energy businesses: Yukos.

But the success of Khodorkovsky does not go unnoticed by Putin. Whilst Yukos is the biggest tax payer in the New Russia, Vladimir Putin has his eye on the greater prize. He wants the oil company’s profits for himself. And it is not long before he makes his move.

Epsiode Two features first-hand accounts from Mikhail Khodorkovsky, along with Anders Aslund.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In post-Soviet Russia, two men are rising through the ranks, but they are following different trajectories. One is a businessman: Mikhail Khodorkovsky is an entrepreneur, seizing opportunities as Russia looks likely to move towards a western style economy. Mikhail Khodorkovsky soon became the richest man in Russia.

The other is a KGB officer, stationed in Dresden when the Berlin wall fell: Vladimir Putin went on to be head of the FSB and soon became President of the largest country in the world.

With two diametrically opposed ideals, the two were destined to clash. And they when they did it was live on national television. This edition lays down the foundations for a struggle that lasted for around 15 years between the two patriotic Russians.

Episode One features contributions from Mark Galeotti, Anders Aslund, Chris Bryant MP and Anne Applebaum.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Interpol conjures up images of shady agents in sharp suits, jetting around the world to capture international criminals. But recently the international police agency has come under fire, as autocratic regimes around the world have used its Red Notice system to harass and arrest political exiles. Has Interpol become just an international extension of the regimes of Vladimir Putin and Xi Jin Ping? Should the organization be reformed? Or is the criticism too harsh for a one hundred year old organization with a history of tracking criminals across borders? Jen talks to New York Times reporter Matt Apuzzo about where things went wrong, and how they could get back on track.

This week’s news from Russia brought to you by Moscow Times journalists and guests.

Russian President Vladimir Putin in July, singled out American-born businessman Bill Browder at a joint press conference in Helsinki, Finland. Putin, standing alongside President Trump, named Browder and his business dealings. Browder was the largest foreign investor in Russia until he was arrested in 2005 and expelled from the country. His corporate documents were seized by Russian authorities, he says, and the young lawyer he hired to investigate—Sergei Magnitsky—was arrested and died in prison. Seeking justice, Browder lobbied for the Magnitsky Act, which he says prevents “Russian torturers and murderers” from using America’s banking system. In this discussion with CNN’s Suzanne Malveaux, Browder talks about the Helsinki summit, the infamous Trump Tower meeting, and why he says he’s not afraid of Putin. This discussion was held on July 27th at the Resnick Aspen Action Forum in Aspen, Colorado.

Show Notes Listen to the Aspen Ideas to Go episode, CRISPR: A Crack in Creation. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Email your comments to aspenideastogo@gmail.com. The views and opinions of the speakers in the podcast do not necessarily reflect those of the Aspen Institute.

aspenideas.org