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MOSCOW – In their heyday Russia's oligarchs, a group of brash quick-witted young entrepreneurs who became billionaires overnight in the 1990s by acquiring state companies for a song, had the power to make or break governments.
But the once-mighty oligarchs have been vanquished by President Vladimir Putin, who is expected to storm to a second-term win in presidential elections this month.
In 1996 the oligarchs bankrolled Boris Yeltsin's victorious presidential campaign against a resurgent communist movement, and in the dying days of Yeltsin's rule were widely seen to be the dominant power in the land.
As Yeltsin's power weakened, oligarchs became increasingly influential in politics and played a significant role in financing the re-election of Yeltsin in 1996.
The 1998 financial crisis hit the oligarchs hard, however, and those whose holdings were based on banking lost much of their fortunes.
In the Putin era, the remaining oligarchs have come under fire for various alleged and real illegal activities, particularly the underpayment of taxes in the businesses they acquired.
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