Economics
Putin's Bailout Bank Needs a Rescue; It's an $18 Billion Whopper
- VEB funded Kremlin-backed projects, now faces big losses
- Western sanctions cut off funding access as debt payments loom
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For years, Vladimir Putin used Vnesheconombank (VEB) to pay for “special projects,” from the Sochi Olympics to covert acquisitions in Ukraine to oligarch bailouts. Now, the state bank needs a rescue of its own and it could be the Kremlin’s costliest yet.