The nationalized Yuzhuralzoloto was sold on the fourth attempt. The buyer was a Chechen businessman close to Kadyrov
The nationalized Yuzhuralzoloto was sold on the fourth attempt. The buyer was a Chechen businessman close to Kadyrov
Russia’s Federal Agency for State Property Management held the fourth auction to sell the Yuzhuralzoloto gold mining group (YUGK). The winner was BTS-Most Holding, a company owned by Chechen businessman Ruslan Baisarov. The media have called him the “wallet” of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov; Baisarov himself has said that they are friends.
Baisarov’s company bought Yuzhuralzoloto for 93 billion rubles, more than 40% below the starting price of 162 billion rubles.
YUGK was nationalized in 2025 in a lawsuit brought by the Prosecutor General’s Office. A court in Chelyabinsk confiscated the stakes of the group’s founder, Konstantin Strukov, citing his violation of the ban on combining business and public service. The first three auctions to sell YUGK did not take place because there were no participants admitted to the bidding.
@meduzalive
The Fourth Attempt Found Its Buyer
YUGK sold on the fourth try, over forty percent below the starting price.
Three auctions stayed silent; the fourth spoke in discounts.