Problems plague Telegram’s monetization drive PRO Members Public
The first official adverts began appearing on messaging app Telegram earlier this month. But the development has caused widespread discontent among users, and some channels even started warning readers about the contents of adverts (over which they have no control). Telegram has a tempestuous relationship with the authorities and its
QR-codes for all PRO Members Public
Hello! This week our top story is Russia’s decision to make QR-codes its main tool to fight the pandemic as coronavirus death rates remain at record highs. We also look at why several big Russian companies have scrapped IPOs at the last minute, and the official launch of advertising
Russia’s biggest liquor store chain targets $13bln IPO valuation PRO Members Public
Alcohol retailer Red & White announced Wednesday the details of its imminent initial public offering (IPO) on the Moscow Exchange. The company could be valued at up to $13 billion, less than originally anticipated, but still enough to make it the largest placement in Russia this year. * Mercury Retail Group,
Alfa Group circles in conflict over confectionery empire PRO Members Public
The death of businessman Boris Alexandrov last year triggered a battle for control of his confectionery company, Rostagrokompleks. Alexandrov’s former partner, Yuri Izachik, finally went public Tuesday with his version of how the corporate conflict over Rostagrokompleks has unfolded. Izachik, who currently lives in Kansas, was put on an
Top Communist detained after dismembered elk found in trunk PRO Members Public
Senior Communist Party official and parliamentary deputy Valery Rashkin could face up to two years in jail for poaching after being detained last month with the carcass of an elk in the trunk of his car. Rashkin, one of the most anti-Kremlin voices in Communist Party, said he was set-up.
Liquor store gold PRO Members Public
Hello! This week our top story is the planned record-breaking IPO of liquor store chain Red & White. We also look at the corporate conflict that engulfed a top confectionary company after the death of its founder, and the senior Communist Party official detained for poaching when police found a
Influential lawmaker linked to ‘Rakova case’ PRO Members Public
The so-called ‘Rakova case’ is fast becoming one of the most significant criminal cases to be investigated in Russia this year. So far, it has implicated former deputy minister Marina Rakova and the head of one of the country’s last surviving independent universities. Since we last reported on the
Officials attack rap star Morgenshtern over Victory Day criticism PRO Members Public
Popular rapper Alisher Morgenshtern landed in hot water this week when he criticized Russia’s lavish annual celebrations to mark the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in 1945. His words brought an angry response from the Kremlin and the head of the powerful Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin. * In a video
Rapper in hot water PRO Members Public
Hello! Our top story this week is about how comments by rapper Morgenshtern on the senselessness of Victory Day sparked an official backlash and forced the popular musician to apologize. We also look at how a criminal case against an ex-deputy education minister is linked to a conflict with a
Specter of stagflation stalks Russian economy PRO Members Public
A new wave of COVID-19 has started to rage across Russia and last week the Moscow authorities decided to impose the most significant restrictions since the first weeks of the pandemic back in spring 2020. In an aggressive move amid rising inflation, the Central Bank also raised its key rate
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The Bell was founded in 2017 by journalists Elizaveta Osetinskaya, Irina Malkova and Peter Mironenko as a news outlet independent from the Russian authorities, after its founders have been sacked as top editors at the largest Russian news website RBC because of pressure from the Kremlin.
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