Oil prices drop to lowest level in a year amid increased US and Russian output December 18, 2018 Oil prices dropped sharply this morning to their lowest point in over a year as US output looks set to reach 8m barrels per day by the end of 2018. International standard Brent crude fell off a cliff at around 9am UK time, plummeting around four per cent to $57.27 per barrel. However it later [...]
European politicians blast Gazprom over Nord Steam 2 pipeline December 13, 2018 Shares in Russian energy giant Gazprom dropped earlier today after the European Parliament voted to condemn the construction of Nord Stream 2, a pipeline running through the Baltic Sea. Shares initially fell 1.8 per cent to 153.30 rubles as markets opened in Moscow. But they later rebounded, ending the day up 0.45 per cent to 156.49 rubles. [...]
Give accountants the tools they need to fight money laundering December 13, 2018 THE GOVERNMENT estimates that around $90bn of dirty money comes through the UK each year. Inevitably, this money eventually comes into contact with finance professionals, which has prompted charges of widespread ethical failures. Clearly, there are people with financial skills who are knowingly laundering money. But the truth is more nuanced than the frequent accusations [...]
Visas for super rich investors scrapped amid crackdown on money laundering December 6, 2018 The government will suspend golden ticket investment visas, which allow non-EU nationals to stay in the UK if they invest £2m, amid a crackdown on organised crime. Just buying into UK companies, or buying government bonds, will no longer be enough for Russian oligarchs, Middle Eastern oil barons and other super rich investors to stay in the UK. The [...]
Exxon and Chevron plan to sell stakes in ‘contract of the century’ oil field December 4, 2018 Exxon Mobil and Chevron are looking to sell their stakes in a BP-operated oil field in Azerbaijan once dubbed the “contract of the century”. Exxon Mobil is hoping it can raise up to $2bn by selling its 6.8 per cent holding in the field by the Caspian Sea, sources told Reuters yesterday. The move is [...]
Why a river of dirty money flows through the United Kingdom December 4, 2018 Britain first passed a law allowing for the creation of limited-liability companies – described by the Economist in 1999 as “the key to industrial capitalism” – in the mid-19th century. They quickly exploded in popularity. Those arrangements are now under close scrutiny, after landing at the heart of the money-laundering scandal that has enveloped Danish [...]
Oil prices soar as US and China agree to hold fire in trade war December 3, 2018 Oil prices soared overnight after a ceasefire in the US-China trade war was announced yesterday. International standard Brent crude was up 4.7 per cent to $62.42 a barrel this morning UK time. At the G20 meeting in Argentina over the weekend the US and China, the world’s two largest economies, agreed not to impose new [...]
Court short: Will Brexit loosen the UK’s legal grip? December 2, 2018 Last Thursday, Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska squared off against a fellow Russian businessman Vladimir Chernukhin in court 15 of London’s Rolls Building, while in court 28 two Romanian oil companies went toe-to-toe, and in Court 19 a Russian bank litigated against some of its former shareholders. London has developed into a pre-eminent international dispute resolution [...]
Ukraine bans Russian men from entering country as tension continues to grow November 30, 2018 Ukraine has banned Russian men aged between 16 and 60 from crossing the border into the country as tensions between the two continue to rise. It comes after three Ukrainian ships and their crews were seized by Russia in the Black Sea last weekend, leaving several Ukrainians injured. Parts of the country became under marital [...]
Trump lawyer admits lying to Congress over president’s Russian affairs November 29, 2018 The former lawyer of US President Donald Trump has admitted he lied to Congress amid an investigation into Russia’s role in the 2016 election. Michael Cohen, who served as then-businessman Trump’s personal lawyer for several years, pleaded guilty following charges filed by special counsel Robert Mueller last night. Cohen said that he had included false [...]