FURY erupted yesterday as it emerged that rich Russians withdrew £2billion BEFORE a tax raid on bank savings in Cyprus was announced.
The revelation came as Eurozone ministers proposed a plan to protect investors with under 100,000 euros (£85,700).But British troops on the Mediterranean island were left fearing they may still lose out as the UK Government watered down a guarantee to safeguard their cash.
An earlier scheme to grab 6.75 per cent of smaller savings would see an estimated 60,000 British ex-pats — with £1.7billion in Cypriot banks — potentially losing thousands.
The controversial one-off tax was announced on Saturday as part of a 10billion euro bailout.
But Russian oligarchs and big investors emptied accounts in the days beforehand, prompting claims they were tipped off by bank insiders. A source told The Sun: “It leaked out. Bankers warned their best clients. Government officials warned their friends and relatives.
“Billions disappeared from accounts in days, most from accounts held by Russians.”
Russians are by far the biggest overseas investors in Cyprus, with a stake estimated at 20billion euros. There are accusations criminals use the island for money-laundering. Russian president Vladimir Putin yesterday called the tax “unfair and dangerous”.
A vote on the levy was postponed as hundreds of protesters gathered at the parliament building in Nicosia.
There was anger too in the House of Commons as it emerged that the 3,250 British troops and civilian staff in Cyprus will not all be fully protected. The MoD admitted they will only be covered for “reasonable losses” and each case will be decided on its merits “rather than automatic, blanket coverage”. Shadow armed forces minister Kevan Jones said: “It is absolutely vital that no member of our Armed Forces is out of pocket."
The crisis fuelled fears of a run on banks in other troubled Eurozone economies such as Spain and Ireland.
Stock markets dived with more than £1.8billion wiped from the value of Barclays, which has a branch in Cyprus. The FTSE 100 closed down 31 points, mirroring falls in Germany and France.
No comments:
Post a Comment