The World’s Richest Man - Putin’s Russia #3

Russian President Vladimir Putin is likely the richest man in the world with a fortune over $100 Billion--all of it stolen from the Russian people he's supposed to represent. Click for a free audiobook with one-month trial at audible.com ****** Start with Part 1 of this series: ****** Subscribe to TDC: ****** Like our page on Facebook ****** Join us on Google ****** Follow us on Twitter ****** Putin’s quick rise to power is directly tied to his extraordinary ability to steal from the Russian people by skimming off and keeping for himself percentages of the government contracts he controls. He’ s been very good at identifying equally corrupt people to do business with. And once he established a relationship with a reliable partner, that partner stood to gain enormously. That’s how Russia has become the most unequal country - developed or developing - in the world. 110 billionaires control more than a third of the entire economy in a nation with nearly 150 million people. As Putin gained political power, his chosen allies became richer. They were dependent on Putin, but Putin’s power was not dependent on them, giving him incredible leverage. This leverage has translated to deep loyalty, cemented by Putin’s proven willingness to wield the power of the state to punish his personal enemies or to teach his allies a lesson. All images and video clips under protection of Fair Use in US Copyright Law: ****** Music: -"Their Story, Them Seeing." - Puddle of Infinity, YouTube -"Space Coast" - Topher Mohr, YouTube -"Summer Of'42" - Stealing Orchestra, ******

It’s important to stress that Putin’s quick rise to power is directly tied to his extraordinary ability to steal from the Russian people by skimming off and keeping for himself percentages of the government contracts he controls. He’ s been very good at identifying equally corrupt people to do business with. And once he established a relationship with a reliable partner, that partner stood to gain enormously. That’s how Russia has become the most unequal country - developed or developing - in the world. 110 billionaires control more than a third of the entire economy in a nation with nearly 150 million people. As Putin gained political power, his chosen allies became richer. They were dependent on Putin, but Putin’s power was not dependent on them, giving him incredible leverage. This leverage has translated to deep loyalty, cemented by Putin’s proven willingness to wield the power of the state to punish his personal enemies or to teach his allies a lesson. Putin himself has both hands deep in the cookie jars of some of Russia’s biggest companies, including state owned Gazprom--the mega company that is responsible for 8% of Russia’s total GDP. From the book Putin’s Kleptocracy, “Western newspapers now report that in 2007 a CIA assessment of Putin’s personal wealth “largely tracked” with assertions made by the Russian political analyst Stanislav Belkovskiy, who claimed that Putin had holdings totaling about $40 billion in the commodity-trading company Gunvor, the publicly traded state-majority-owned gas giant Gazprom, and the oil and gas company Surgutneftegaz.” This involvement has allowed him to build a personal fortune that is likely close to $100 Billion, making him the richest man in the world without any real rival--and all at the hands of the Russian people who should be the true beneficiaries of any profits generated by taxpayer funds or state-owned companies. You’d think he wouldn’t be bold enough to start spending those billions, at least not while he’s in power, because that would draw attention to how he acquired his fortune. But Putin is that bold, that greedy. He has over $100 million dollars in Yachts, dozens of helicopters and planes, millions of dollars in watches, a fleet of the best luxury cars, and his crown jewel, Putin’s Palace, a gargantuan estate outside of Sochi that is one of nine built during his presidency. This lavish lifestyle was detailed in a 2012 report coauthored by the politician Boris Nemtsov--the same Boris Nemtsov who was assassinated steps from the Kremlin in February. Putin has said in the past that he pours blood into toiling for the Russian people, but what he didn’t say was that the blood spilled is never his own. That was part 3 in our examination of Russia under Putin. If you’d like to learn the details of how Putin clawed his way to the top, I think you’d find the audiobook Putin’s Kleptocracy fascinating. And we’ve arranged for you to get it for free. All you have to do is sign up for a free one-month trial at Audible.com. And if you sign up, audible will contribute a little funds to our channel. So you get to feel good about helping to support us, and all it costs you is--well nothing, because you get a free audio book. And you can also support us by watching more of our videos or liking this video. Or watch our mini-documentary profiling the 10 biggest megaprojects around the world. Or you can check out our rundown of the greatest conquerors in world history.