Why Russia Is Desperately Selling Off Its Gold
Paul J. Warburg
18 min
Russia is selling gold to oligarchs because its war chest is gone and it cannot fund the war anymore. The Russian regime will likely fall as it runs out of money and soldiers to continue the conflict.
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Vladimir Putin
Chapters
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0:00
Contradictory Gold Trends
Russia sells gold while oligarchs buy it, showing desperation.
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0:44
Oligarchs Buying Gold
Russian oligarchs buy gold to escape unstable rubles and frozen assets.
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4:52
Government Selling Gold
The government sells gold to oligarchs using rubles to fund itself.
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7:06
War Chest Depletion
Russia's initial war savings are gone due to rapid spending and sanctions.
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9:10
Inflation as a Tactic
Russia prints money to fund the war, causing high inflation and empty pockets.
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11:31
Gold Reserves Depleted
Russia has sold 57% of its gold reserves, nearing total exhaustion.
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13:32
Recruitment Crisis
Russia cannot fund high soldier salaries anymore and faces a recruitment shortage.
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15:44
Economic Strategy Success
Ukraine's economic pressure is making the Russian regime untenable.
Key points
- 0:00
Two contradictory gold stories reveal Russia's true economic state.
- 0:44
Russian oligarchs buy massive amounts of gold while publicly claiming economic strength.
- 4:52
Oligarchs trade rubles for gold because international markets refuse to accept them.
- 4:52
Sophisticated investors vote against Russia by refusing to trade for its currency.
- 7:06
Russia built a war chest expecting a short conflict and quick victory.
- 9:10
Half the initial war chest was frozen immediately after the invasion began.
- 9:10
The government prints money to fund the war, causing inflation to skyrocket.
- 11:31
Russia has sold 57% of its gold reserves held in the National Wealth Fund.
- 13:32
Running out of money forces Russia to consider ending the war soon.
- 15:44
The regime cannot stay in power while fighting because resources are exhausted.
Who and where
People · 1
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Vladimir Putin 5
President of the Russian Federation
Photo 1
1. Photo: Пресс-служба Президента России, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · Wikidata · redrawn in our house style (Vladimir Putin)
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