Russian Bank Under Investigation By The IMF

The Russian central bank received its first $640 million loan installment from the International Monetary Fund [1] (IMF) but will the bank receive future installments on the $4.5 billion loan?

It depends on what the IMF and PricewaterhouseCoopers uncover in their joint investigation [2] of the bank.

The investigation coincides with allegations that Russians may have illegally diverted up to $10 billion through the Bank of New York. IMF aid money could have been part of that alleged amount.

Central bank agreed to independent reviews of its books as a condition of loan approval. However, if the IMF concludes the Russian bank is not complying with loan terms, the second loan installment won't be on its way next month.

If the probe finds that central bank hasn't been on the up and up, it won't be the first time. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers [3], central bank funneled $1.2 billion to an offshore company in 1996.