Russia’s Newest Billionaire Made a Fortune From Cheap Booze
Photographer: Alexander Zemlianichenko Jr./Bloomberg
This article is for subscribers only.
Russia’s very sober president, Vladimir Putin, has spent 18 years erecting barriers to selling alcohol to a population that’s still recovering from the decade-long bender that followed communism’s collapse.
Crackdowns on kiosks and ads, electronic inventory tracking and higher taxes have all succeeded in suppressing consumption. They’ve also cleared the field for a Soviet-era bootlegger with a knack for navigating complex rules to make a fortune selling cheap booze.