Yukos

In November 2004, the Financial Times published an article entitled ‘Yukos's Fall from Grace’: Q

What is Yukos?

A

Just more than a year ago, Yukos was Russia's largest and most profitable oil company … For much of the 1990s, Yukos was associated with the worst abuses of minority shareholder rights in Russia. However, the company subsequently evolved into one of the country's most highly regarded companies with foreign management and internationally audited accounts. At its peak Yukos had a market capitalisation of more than $30bn, making it the biggest stock in Russia.

Q

What has happened to it?

A

… It faces back tax claims of up to $25bn; its two shareholders, Mr Khodorkovsky and business associate Platon Lebedev, are in prison on charges of fraud and tax evasion; … and its main production asset – Yuganskneftegas – is being sold at half its minimum fair value at a forced auction. The company's market capitalisation has fallen to just $2bn. ¹