Russia hit by fresh bank scandal

The authorities say savers may get their money back - eventually

Hundreds of savers have picketed the office of defunct Russian bank Sodbiznesbank, in the hope of seeing the return of their money.

The authorities have pledged to do what they can for clients of Sodbiznesbank, whose licence was revoked on 14 May.

Dmitry Tulin, deputy chief of the Bank of Russia, accused Sodbiznesbank of "gross repeat violations" of laws against fraud and terrorist finance.

The bank, he said, last year conducted "suspicious operations" worth $1bn.

The bank has closed its doors to depositors, but the central bank said it was possible that its assets would be sufficient to cover outstanding claims.

'Isolated incident'

The Sodbiznesbank affair is an uncomfortable reminder of 1998, when dozens of major banks went bust, taking depositors' savings with them.

The central bank was quick to point out, however, that this case was one of isolated alleged wrong-doing, and was not symptomatic of wider ills in the system.

Sodbiznesbank faces a broad range of accusations, including inflating its accounts, possessing ransom money, and being involved in a payout for the 2003 murder or of two company executives in Tatarstan.

The complexity of the case has been heightened by the refusal of bank management to cooperate with the authorities.

Sodbiznesbank would not admit the interim managers appointed by the central bank, and hired its own liquidator - an act deemed illegal by the central bank.

According to media reports, depositors were kept out of Sodbiznesbank's offices by armed men, who were seen apparently shredding documents.

According to Sodbiznesbank's own statements, it has 50,000 customers, making it the fifth-largest Russian bank by this measure.