Russian businessman, sanctions oligarch and billionaire Oleg Deripaska said that “the Russian treasury in 2023 may be empty” and the country will be forced to rely on the influx of foreign investment from “friendly” countries. The founder of Rusal made such a statement during the Krasnoyarsk Economic Forum (KEF), Bloomberg reports .
“Next year there will be no money. We will need foreign investors,” the billionaire said during his speech at the forum.
Deripaska believes that the realization of such a forecast is almost inevitable. He sees the government's recent initiatives to impose new taxes on large Russian companies and the attempt to withdraw money in the form of one-time tax levies as direct evidence that the money is running out.
“Therefore, they have already begun to shake us,” Deripaska said, commenting on the government's initiatives.
The billionaire believes that without foreign investment, the economy will face extremely serious difficulties, since foreign sanctions currently carry serious risks of economic stagnation, which only foreign capital can help overcome. The agency notes that Deripaska's speech is one of the most outspoken speeches by representatives of large Russian business since the beginning of the war, and especially against the backdrop of the government's desire to collect more taxes from Russian entrepreneurs.
The sanctions oligarch also spoke out categorically against building “state capitalism” in Russia – on the contrary, in his opinion, the government should focus on maintaining a free market economy. Deripaska believes that only such an approach, coupled with guarantees to businesses and foreign investors, can significantly change the current situation in a positive way.
“Russia must continue to develop a market economy. A foreign investor will watch how a Russian investor makes money, what conditions exist,” he explained the logic of his speech.
The billionaire calls on the government to create conditions for foreign investors and countries that have "serious resources" and can become partners with Russia. Such players, according to Deripaska, can be attracted by creating a safe business climate with greater economic freedom and competition. The oligarch made it clear that we are talking about eastern countries, since it is there that about 4.5 billion people live and a total GDP of $ 30 trillion.
“We thought we were a European country. Now, over the next 25 years, we will think more about our Asian past,” the businessman said.
Western sanctions have proven to be a serious problem for the Russian authorities. Despite the rhetoric of President Vladimir Putin that the authorities managed to maintain stability, and the economic effect of the sanctions was not detrimental to the economy, the government in January recorded a record budget deficit since the default year of 1998. Now the authorities are urgently looking for ways to replenish the budget in 2023. In 2022, the authorities have already carried out several tax tightenings, which were supposed to increase budget revenues, and in 2023 they settled on a one-time contribution to the Russian budget from businesses, the amount of which has not yet been approved.