#006 | How Did The Russian Oligarchs Get So Rich? | English Learning for Curious Minds Podcast

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**Episode #006 - English Learning for Curious Minds**

**How did the Russian oligarchs get so rich?**

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Ever wondered how the Russian oligarchs actually managed to get so rich? Today we're going to be taking a look at how 22 men managed to gain control of 39% of Russia's entire economy, while the majority of the rest of the country suffered.

In today's episode we cover:

- Brief history of Russia before 1991
- Who the Russian oligarchs were
- The voucher scheme: how ordinary Russians could have owned the country, and instead handed it over to speculators
- How Khodorkovsky set up his own bank
- The Presidential election in 1996 (and how Yeltsin was helped by the media tycoons)
- Investment tenders: terrible companies for a promise
- The rigged auctions (how one man bought shares worth $5 billion for $310 million)
- What happened when Vladimir Putin arrived
- Russian oligarchs today

Key vocabulary: Abolished, Amass, Stagnant, Spoils, Initiatives, Equitable, Bidder, Assets, Formalising, Nominal, Nominal, Share ownership, Pressing, Ingenious, Schemes, Scheming, Loopholes, Exploited, Enterprising, Subsidies, A pile of cash, Speculate, Currency markets, Arbitraging, Command, Dozen, Stood, Threw all of their weight, Free rein, Cut-price, Tenders, Anxious, Sell-off, Unproductive, Market economy, Snapped up, Rock bottom prices, Loot, Scandalous, Auctioning off, Rigged, Auctioneer, Stake, Bargain, Along came, Reign, Purged, Uncorroborated, Deals were struck, Chunk, Amassed

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Curious? It's just 15 minutes long.

It's English learning, but for curious minds.

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**** More about Leonardo English and the English for Curious Minds podcast ****

Learning English shouldn't be boring. It should open your mind.

English Learning for Curious Minds is a podcast aimed at intermediate level English speakers and above, where listeners learn fascinating things about the world while learning English.

There's no small-talk, no boring grammar exercises or vocabulary drills.

You'll learn English by listening, by hearing real conversations and real English, spoken by native speakers, and at a speed you can understand.

Listeners can subscribe to Leonardo English to get a copy of the transcript and key vocabulary for every podcast.

It's English learning, but for curious minds.